Creating a Home
by TammiR
Summary: A look at how the Cullens came to settle in Forks & set up their first real 'home'. How Alice & Jasper first met up with the Cullen coven & joined the family & a bit of early story development when they first crossed paths with Chief Black. All original couple pairings (pre-Bellla), Just trying my hand at my first FanFic. REVIEWS & Constructive Criticism WANTED! Thanks for reading.
1. Coming to Forks

Disclaimer – I own nothing, the characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.

It was during the Great Depression, Carlisle, Esme, and I had finally convinced Rosalie and Emmett to exercise a margin of self-restraint long enough for them to be tolerable on our trip out west. The time had come for us to leave Chicago and its surrounding areas, not that we would be readily missed, the population had become increasingly transient as families were always looking for work, much less food and a more favorable climate than the cold winter that would soon be upon them. Of course, none of this truly mattered to our growing coven – we were vampires and could easily survive anywhere, just as long as no one noticed us glittering in the sunlight, or that we didn't age.

We traveled west to the Olympic Peninsula; it rained a great deal there and we wouldn't need to concern ourselves so much with endless days of sunshine. There was also a great deal of wild life for us to feed off of, unlike the majority of our kind; we chose not to feed off of the humans but animals. They sustained us; our eye color was also not as obvious as the tell-tale blood red of the others and allowed us to interact with the humans with greater ease. Things appeared to be going well on our move, until we were discovered by a local tribe of Indians – they called themselves Quileutes and had come across our kind in their past. A mated pair had decimated a large part of their tribe and they knew that they wanted nothing to do with our kind, and most certainly did not want us on their land. They also knew what it would take to kill us.

Carlisle spoke with them and convinced them that we would bring no harm to them, that we only hunted animals, not humans. The Quileute Chief and Carlisle formed a treaty stating that we were never to trespass on their lands, and that we were to never harm a human or they would expose us for what we were to the pale faces. While the tension would long remain, the treaty would allow us to have a peaceful existence in the area, and maybe even a real home. What hadn't been counted on was that our presence would have such a strong impact on this small tribe – they were shape shifters. When vampires were near their lands some of them transformed into large powerful wolves that were capable of killing our kind, not something we were accustomed to dealing with. We all wanted to live as close to normal as possible so we made sure we all abided by the rules that had been agreed to.

More than a month had passed since the treaty was made, and Esme had found the perfect spot for our new home, a small river ran just down the hill from where we had cleared the trees. There was a small town starting to develop far enough away that we wouldn't be easily noticed, but still close enough to interact with the humans if we wanted to. Carlisle always seemed to want to help them; he had studied medicine over the years and enjoyed it immensely. That was how he came upon me, my name is Edward by the way, when I was 17 and dying from the flu. It was also how he had come upon his mate, Esme – she had been presumed dead by the humans after her fall, but Carlisle had heard her heartbeat in spite of how faint it had been. They complimented each other well; they were both very kind and giving and had basically taken on the role of being my parents. Rosalie was a slightly different story – we don't talk about it much, very sad really, but Carlisle had hoped she and I would become mates after he found her, nearly dead, and changed her. Things didn't work out that way though. We seemed to annoy each other more like siblings tend to rather than find anything irresistible about each other. One day she carried Emmett out of the woods after he had been attacked by a bear asking Carlisle to save him. They've been mates ever since, and ironic as it may sound, bear is Emmett's favorite thing to hunt.

After a couple of weeks had passed, the house was finished to Esme's satisfaction and we had settled in. The hunting was plentiful, and the area was quite beautiful with the mountains and forests. We didn't bother with the beach; it was off limits in accordance with the treaty. The Quileute weren't thrilled with our decision to stay in the area, but we kept to our end of the bargain and as time went on, they started to accept the possibility that we would stay true to our word and not harm any humans.


	2. The Arrival

Disclaimer – I own nothing, the characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.

The arrival of new comers…..

We had settled in rather nicely into our first real home, one where we didn't need to constantly be on guard and could just be ourselves. I played piano for Esme, even writing some of my own pieces, and when Rose had finally managed to keep her hands off of Emmett for more than 10 minutes, she learned to play as well. That's what I was doing when I suddenly heard something strange. All of us immediately ran outside and waited. Someone was coming – more than one, and our kind. It was the first time we had encountered vampires in our new home….something we had not honestly contemplated and were unprepared for. Were they like us, or would they bring the wrath of the Quileute down on us for breaking the treaty even if we were innocent of the havoc these new comers could potentially create?

What happened next caught all of us off guard – even Carlisle had not expected an introduction like this. A small pixie-like girl with short black hair came practically dancing out of the trees with a taller blonde vampire alongside of her. She was grinning from ear to ear and before any of us could say anything, threw her arms around Esme's neck saying how happy she was to have finally found her family. Carlisle looked to me and I just looked at him totally perplexed – I could hear their thoughts and found no ill intent. If anything, the blonde vampire seemed to be almost as confused as we were about the exchange.

"My name is Alice, and this is Jasper. I'm sorry if I was too forward, it's just that we've been looking for you all for so long. I just knew we would find you here next to the river!"

Carlisle looked at both of them before he spoke. "What do you mean you've been looking for us? Just who are you two and what do you want?" We all noticed the red eyes, although they were nearly black, it meant that they hunted humans. We had only been here a short while and hadn't planned on leaving any time soon. Do we hear them out, or send them on their way. Carlisle looked at Esme as she cleared her throat-

"Is there something we can help you two with? Would you care to sit and talk for a while? You'll have to excuse our poor manners; we hadn't planned on having company so soon." Esme, ever the gracious hostess soon put everyone at ease with her kind words.

Alice did most of the talking while Jasper sat quietly by her side. Apparently she had visions and had 'seen' the two of them coming to live with our family as she had called it. Jasper sat quietly looking at each of us in turn as if he were measuring each of us up. She assured us that they wanted to join us and our way of living – to hunt animals instead of humans. She was beyond energetic to say the least. Esme and Carlisle welcomed them into our home, and ultimately our coven grew by two.

Rosalie seemed to be content to have another girl around the house and Emmett was grateful to have someone other than me to try to beat at chess. Esme beamed at her growing family –something that she remembered from her human life was how much she wanted to have a large one. Carlisle seemed to take an interest in Alice's past from a scientific standpoint. She had no recollection of her human life but had awoken in an asylum with the ability to see the future. It was this ability that she credited with finding her mate Jasper, and ultimately our coven.

Jasper was quite a different story. He was older than Alice, and had come from a combatant background and a long standing diet based off of hunting humans. He was quiet, and trying to hide something from us, but he did agree to hunt as we did so I decided to wait him out. He was keeping his thoughts quiet as he tried to decide how he felt about us and if Alice had been right about coming here. All I could get from him is that he wanted everyone, including himself, to just stay calm so everything would be alright. It made him difficult for me to hear what he was thinking, he was just so guarded, and then I caught it. It was fleeting, but it had been there "If I can just keep everyone calm while I decide what we should do" – he was trying to control us through our emotions! I would tell Carlisle he was trying to hide an ability to influence emotions as soon as I could without being overheard. In the meantime, I would have to concentrate on what he was thinking and try to get him to open up to me.


	3. Jasper's Take

JASPER'S POV:

I thought she was crazy, hell, I thought I was crazy for going along with her! I had no trouble believing my mate when I first stumbled across her in that little diner, she took my breath away. She was almost the complete opposite of what Maria was, and I could instantly tell she was genuine in all that she said to me during our first encounter. Alice was my saving grace, she told me about her visions and that we were destined for each other, and then she told me that we had to leave if we were going to find our family.

That's how we got here, though I'm not entirely sure where 'here' is exactly. Alice just kept telling me we were close "We just need to find the house on the river".

What she did next made me fear for her life.

"They're over here Jasper!"

"Alice! Wait – what are you doing?" She went bounding through the tree line and across the river where the coven we had been searching for stood outside a beautiful home waiting. I had to keep them calm; I had to keep myself calm, to protect Alice, to keep her from getting hurt. She was my mate, and even though we hadn't been together for very long, she was my reason for existing. I had to keep her safe and just couldn't bring myself to have total faith in what she saw, especially where strangers were concerned.

Before anyone knew what was happening she had run up to the woman standing in the center of the group and threw her arms around her. I guess she forgot in her excitement that these vampires had no clue who we were or what our intentions were. She quickly introduced herself and took a step back putting her closer to my side which made it a little bit easier for me to keep calm.

A blonde man spoke first, their leader I decided, but then the woman who Alice had hugged so impulsively spoke up. My impression of her was one of kindness and warmth, maybe Alice did know what she was doing after all. I would have to stop doubting her visions and trust her more. The other three stood slightly behind them and were of more concern to me, especially the big one. Marie had taught me not to underestimate any woman, so I couldn't discount the blonde one standing next to the big one. The other vampire stared at me like he was trying to bore holes into my head, he looked a bit younger than the others but there was something about him I would have to watch.

Alice was babbling along about how she knew we would find them at the river, but had failed to answer the questions their leader had asked. I figured it was time for me to intervene before she went too far down this path without knowing who we were dealing with.

"You'll have to excuse Alice; she just gets carried away when she is so excited. My name is Jasper, "and I carefully extended my hand to the one who had spoken first.

"My name is Carlisle, this is my wife Esme, and our family – Edward, Rosalie and Emmett," he said as he shook my hand in return. "Would you mind explaining what you meant about looking for us?"

"Oh! I'm sorry," Alice said, "Sometimes I forget that people don't always know what I'm talking about. I had a vision of you, your family, and we want to join you. We're all supposed to be together, like one big happy family!"

They all looked at one another trying to make sense of what they had just been told; either that or they were deciding what they should do with us. I noticed that Carlisle kept looking at the one he had called Edward, and he would give him a barely noticeable nod or shake of his head. Maybe I was wrong about who the leader was. It would be a good tactical move to conceal the identity of the true leader when confronted with an unknown entity. Something I could respect with my military background.

Esme spoke up next, "Maybe we should sit down and have a nice long chat. You can explain to us what you saw in your, vision?"

"Of course, "Alice said "I get visions of things that are going to happen. It's not a constant, all of the time type thing of course, but they are usually fairly accurate. First I saw Jasper and I meeting in a diner and that we were going to be mates, so I went looking for the diner and waited there for a long time until he finally showed up."

"I'm sorry love, I didn't mean to keep you waiting" I said as I took her hand in mine. It wasn't only a sign of our affection, it made me feel better having her closer until I figured out more about who we were dealing with. "Alice said that you lived a different lifestyle than the rest of our kind. That we could live like you do if we came here, is that why your eyes aren't red?"

Carlisle spoke again." We don't hunt humans; we survive off of the blood of animals. That is why our eyes are not red. Speaking of eyes, by the look of yours, you look like you haven't been hunting in a while."

"That would be my fault" Alice chimed in. "I didn't know how you hunted, just that it wasn't humans. I was hoping you wouldn't mind showing us what you hunt. I told Jasper it would be easier for us to learn your ways if we started doing what you do right from the start."

"Emmett and I were talking about going hunting later on, but maybe we could take you with us" Rosalie said. "Besides, it might be nice to have another girl around here to help even the numbers out."

Things were going better than I would have ever possibly imagined, but Alice had been right. I was still focusing on keeping everyone calm. The other two were still keeping quiet, and I wanted a better read on them before I stopped trying to keep it calm. I know that Alice wants this, and she said it would be best for us, and it would help me put my past behind me and allow me to move on to something that I wanted, a peaceful life.

"If it's not too much to ask, maybe we should get to know one another a little bit better before we go off hunting" Carlisle said. "I'm curious, you said you have visions?"

"Yes, I think I used to have them before when I was human, but I don't remember much about it. I just kind of remember being locked in a dark room before I woke up. When I did wake up, I was outside of an asylum by myself. "

"Wasn't there anyone there for you? What about the one who created you? Where were they?" Esme asked with obvious concern in her eyes and voice.

"Curious" Carlisle contemplated. "You said no one was there to help you after you were changed? It's remarkable that you were able to survive. Didn't you have anyone to guide you? How did you know not to break any of our laws?"

"I don't know" she shrugged "I just kind of knew. I saw things in my visions so I just followed what I had seen until I met Jasper. He's really the first one of our kind I've spent time with. I just stayed hidden as best that I could while I looked for thing that were familiar. I was too scared to do anything else I guess."

Carlisle and Alice continued on their conversation with him asking question after question about her visions and memories. He seemed intrigued by her past more so than the fact that she could see the future. Esme listened intently with concern for Alice plainly written on her face. I now understood why Alice had hugged her first, she was someone very easy to like and genuinely caring. I wasn't concerned about Esme, she was pure in her intentions and would do us no harm. Carlisle also seemed to be of no threat to either of us and had an undying thirst for knowledge for anything new to him.


	4. A Standoff

The conversations with the new comers came easily enough. The others all seemed to be of the opinion that Alice and Jasper were being completely honest with us and were already starting to like them, maybe even trust them. Listening to Alice's thoughts was easy enough, just that there was so much running through her mind. She was excited to have found us, excited that everything seemed to be going exactly as she had envisioned it would, that we were all getting along so well, that she felt like she had finally found her family after having always been alone. They all talked continuously through the night, the hunting forgotten about until the sun started to come up. I just sat off to the side listening to all that was being said, and thought, trying to make up my mind what I should do. Should I tell Carlisle about my suspicions, or do I give Jasper the benefit of the doubt and let him explain what his abilities are in his own time. What if he's a danger to us? Do I risk the safety of our coven, or do I challenge him? If I decide to challenge him directly, will it put us all in danger, I mean how powerful is he? I've never heard Carlisle talk about someone with the ability to control others through their emotions. Was this a subtle ability, or could he make us feel whatever he wanted in varying intensities? Was he powerful enough to make us want to do something we wouldn't do otherwise? Were the dangers of his ability worth offending them, and possibly upsetting Esme by such a poor showing of manners, or was I over reacting? I needed to speak with Carlisle alone before things went much further.

"Carlisle, may I have a moment of your time?"

"Edward?"

"I'd just like to have a word, if you'll excuse us" I said looking at everyone in the room. They were visibly surprised by my sudden interruption to their conversations.

I headed out to the forest, I didn't want us to be overheard, but I was also reluctant to leave the others alone with Jasper. Carlisle soon appeared next to me with a perplexed look on his face.

"What is it Edward?"

"It's Jasper. I think he has a power that he is trying to hide from us and it concerns me greatly."

"Go on. Tell me what it is."

"I'm not entirely certain, but now that we're away from him, I think I may be correct. I caught just one quick thought from him when they first arrived, to just keep everyone calm. He was only thinking about keeping everyone calm, to keep Alice safe so we wouldn't hurt her."

"Edward, it's not an unusual thought to want to keep things calm in the interest of keeping ones mate safe in the presence of strangers. You'll understand one day when you find your mate. You'll see."

""No Carlisle, it's more than that. As soon as I got away from him, I felt more like, like….I don't know how to explain it exactly. It's just that my feelings are more in line with what I've been thinking since they arrived. I'm not feeling as calm now as I did when we were all sitting together back at the house. I can't tell if it's a subtle power, or if he could be a danger to us. If Jasper can control what we feel, how far can that power reach?"

"Hmmm….I can see your point Edward, do you think it wise for us to leave the others alone with them?"  
"Alice seems to be sincere in her thoughts and all that she's told us. Jasper's thoughts have just been so quiet, just focusing on keeping everything calm. If they both want to join us, and Alice has been forthcoming with her abilities, why hasn't he said anything about his gift?"

"Are you concerned that he may not have the same intentions as Alice has stated? Perhaps we should give him the opportunity to explain himself before we judge him too harshly."

Carlisle, ever the diplomat, I don't know what I expected from him but at least he knew what was worrying me about Jasper. It would be easier to go back to the house now that I had told him what my concerns were. Now he could find a more diplomatic way to breech the subject, hopefully without upsetting anyone. We ran back to the house to find the girls chatting away about the latest clothing styles and Emmet had found someone that he had hopes of beating at chess.

"Well, it looks as though the time has gotten away from us while we've been getting to know one another" Carlisle announced as we entered the living room. The others all turned to look at us, Jasper specifically looking at me. "If anyone is still interested, it looks as though the sun won't be breaking through the clouds anytime soon, so we should be able to go hunting without having to worry so much about being seen."

"That would be wonderful, I am getting rather thirsty" Alice said clapping her hands. She was almost like a small child in her enthusiasm for trying something new.

"Yes," Jasper drawled, "Something to eat would be nice right about now." His eyes never left me.

I decided to challenge him to see if I could get a better read on his thoughts "Care to have a little race Jasper?" The others just laughed knowing how fast I was.

"Don't even think about it Edward, you know you'll win" Alice interjected before Jasper could respond, "We don't know where the hunting grounds are and you have to teach us your ways, remember?"

Jasper wasn't ready to concede so quickly, "I think I'll take you up on that challenge Edward."

Carlisle gave me a warning look, but I was already on my way out the door "Keep up if you can!" and I was off at top speed. Jasper took the bait and followed immediately behind.

Once we had enough distance between us and the others I stopped and turned to him. "What aren't you telling us Jasper? What are you trying to hide?"

Jasper stopped short and just stared at me. Slowly he said "What are you talking about Edward? Alice has told your family everything."

"She has, but you haven't. Just how strong is your power, and what exactly is it that you can do with it."


	5. The Challenge

"What are you talking about Edward?" Jasper was caught off guard. Does he know, and if he does how? I've just got to keep him calm but he's feeling a great deal of distrust towards me.

"You know damned well what I'm talking about Jasper. I've been trying to figure you out since you arrived yesterday. Alice is at least upfront and honest with us, but you, you are hiding something and I won't let you hurt my family!"

I could hear the turmoil in his thoughts as he stood there for a moment looking at me in disbelief. He was still thinking about keeping me calm, but he could, could…..feel what I was feeling too? I decided to wait for Jasper to answer, listening to his thoughts trying to learn more about his abilities and him. If he'd wanted to hurt me he'd had more than enough time to make his move, and if he did attack me, would I be able to take him or would he kill me?

"Edward, I'm not entirely sure what you're talking about. I mean no harm to your family, I came here because of Alice – it was what she wanted and said it would make us both happy."

"Don't give me that crap! You know damned well what I'm talking about! And you can stop trying to manipulate my feelings anytime!" Edward seethed. How dare he try to pull that line of innocent crap with me! He has no idea who he's dealing with and I'm not having any of it.

Jasper stood there contemplating his next move; it was obvious that Edward knew about his power, but didn't seem to understand it entirely. Should I tell him the truth or…..

"Trust me, you want to tell me the truth!"

"How did you do that – how did you know…"

"Know that you were going to lie to me! That you are trying to decide what your next move is going to be! I can hear your thoughts – I can read your mind and I know you've been hiding something from us since you got here!"

Just then, the others came through the trees and stopped, staring at the both of us. I didn't say anything; I just kept my eyes on Jasper –if there was a time that he was going to try to hurt any of us it would be now. Jasper looked at each one of us in turn until he got to Alice. She just stood there next to Rosalie and nodded her head.

"It's okay Jasper, you can tell them. I think it would be better for all of us if you did."

"What are you guys talking about?" Emmett had finally realized that something out of the ordinary was going on. Took him long enough to figure it out. Rosalie didn't say a word; she just moved closer to Emmett and put her hand on his arm not entirely certain herself about what was transpiring.

"Tell them. Tell them all what you've been doing since you arrived!"  
"Edward, perhaps it would be easier for Jasper to speak if you did actually try to calm down and let him speak" Carlisle knew what was happening, but he wanted the others to hear and decide for themselves.

Confusion. That's what I felt coming from everyone, confusion. Even Alice was confused; I guess she didn't understand how Edward who had been so quiet since we had arrived could be so angry with me. Edward just glared at me demanding my answer –I didn't need to be able to read his mind to know that from the look on his face, and he was angry. I had to be careful, I didn't want to ruin this for Alice, but I had to keep her safe, if Carlisle is their leader like I originally thought, than this may still work, but if it was in fact Edward who was in charge this wasn't going to go well.

Edward scoffed "I'm not in charge of anything; Carlisle is our leader, our father figure if you will. Now spit it out!"

"Edward is right, I've been keeping some things to myself and I don't want to ruin this opportunity for Alice, or for me. Although, I'm not exactly sure where I should begin."

"If I may, why don't you tell us what your ability is" Carlisle offered. "We know of Alice's visions and I think you now know that Edward can hear our thoughts, so why don't you tell us specifically what it is that you are able to do with yours. Edward thinks you can manipulate our feelings or something along those lines?"

"That isn't entirely accurate. I can sense what those around me are feeling, and if I focus on it hard enough, I can influence their emotional state. My creator, Maria, quickly discovered this about me and put me to work training her armies. She used me to keep the newborns under control so they wouldn't tear each other apart or expose our location." Jasper paused to let this new information sink in and to try to get a sense of what everyone was feeling. He expected the initial flood of surprise that he sensed, but he didn't expect the wave of relief that passed through them next. He sensed that even Edward was not as angry anymore and that he was relieved at the honesty Jasper had just shown them all.

Alice had moved to stand next to Jasper and was holding her hand. It was almost as if she was waiting for us to decide if we were still going to allow them to stay or cast them out on their own. The look on her face was one of sadness and hope at the same time.

Rosalie must have decided that she'd finally had enough. "What exactly have you been doing to us Jasper? What makes you think that you have the right to interfere with what any of us are feeling! We're not here for you to control! If you wanted to live with us why would you even try to do something so manipulative! If Alice's visions of the future are so great then why would you do that to us? Don't you trust us, trust her? And you expect us to accept you both and trust you when you pull such an underhanded trick on all of us!"

"Rose!" Esme admonished her. "Just you wait one minute. Give Jasper a chance to explain himself; he may have a very valid explanation for his actions that I for one would like to hear."

Jasper was almost overwhelmed by Alice's sudden sadness; she was upset that they could very easily lose the family she so desperately wanted. The family he wanted her to have for her happiness, the family he wanted to move beyond his own dismal past. He didn't have it within himself to even try to make her feel better at that moment. He had to make things right and fast.


	6. Turning Point

e He

"Oh would you just say it already!" Edward chided him. "We really are quite reasonable as long as you are honest and upfront with us."

"Alice, my love, please forgive me if I screw this up. I never intended to make you unhappy, I just wanted to keep you safe. I just wanted everyone to stay calm, to protect you. Especially after you just went running out of the tree line and up to Esme like you did. You scared the hell out of me. I had no idea who or what this coven was about and if they would harm you. I couldn't stand it if I lost you now; it's like I've finally found a purpose for my existence that doesn't revolve around destroying lives for someone else's personal gain. In my experience, in my past, what you did could have easily been interpreted as an attack, as an invitation for someone to quite literally take your head off. I was terrified for you and I just wanted everyone to stay calm, even me, so I wouldn't ruin this for you and now I've just made a terrible mess of things. I just want to try to make things right, to make you as happy as you've made me since you found me. I am sorry my love."

We all stood there watching Jasper apologize to Alice. As he did, Esme and Rosalie both leaned onto their mates' shoulders with small smiles on their faces touched by such a heartfelt plea. I suddenly felt like I was the odd man out, like I had created all of this turmoil between these two who only wanted to be a part of our family, not our coven, but our family.

"Well, I think that clears it up for now" Carlisle said. "I believe we came out here to go hunting. Perhaps we have a good enough understanding for now of what Jasper's abilities and intentions are that we can discuss this in more detail a bit later on? Alice and Jasper must be getting quite thirsty and our prey is a bit more alert to our presence than the humans so we will have to help them out."

Alice simply beamed at Carlisle's words; her vision of becoming a part of our family was still intact. Jasper would be given plenty of opportunity to explain his actions to their new family, although it didn't seem as though it would be all that necessary at the moment.

"Before we go any further we'll have to explain the treaty we have with the local Indians here. We do not cross over the agreed upon boundaries and they will not expose us to the humans," Carlisle explained.

**AN: Some feedback would be greatly appreciated – I'm debating between bringing Chief Black into things or the Denali clan at this point but it will not change how things turn out in the end. Thanks to all of you who have read this far.**


	7. Carlisle's Concerns

The hunting lessons for Jasper and Alice went well and the months seemed to fly by. Jasper was having a more difficult time with the change to his diet than Alice was, her having been left to fend for herself after being changed seem to be working in her favor for once. The initial tensions created by Edwards suspicions of Jaspers gift had fallen by the wayside and everyone had welcomed both of them, and their special gifts easily enough. Esme was happy with her initial decision to make the house larger than what was absolutely necessary which meant that they had plenty of room for Alice and Jasper without having to build an addition. She was also extremely happy to have a large family and gladly took on the role of being mother to not only Edward, Rosalie and Emmet, but Alice & Jasper as well. Carlisle was also quite happy with how things were turning out in their new home, and was no longer apprehensive about having moved them from Chicago to the remote wilderness of Washington. Carlisle's biggest concern at this point in time was the treaty he had made with Chief Black when they had first arrived.

Carlisle had seen to it with all those that he had changed that they were immediately introduced to his alternative diet of feeding off of animals instead of humans. Sure Edward and Rosalie had both had very short bouts of having hunted humans, but both had returned to hunting animals of their own free will. Neither of them wanted to be monsters, they both wanted to be good and to live among the humans if it were at all possible to do so without being noticed for what they actually were. Emmett wouldn't dare do anything that would possibly upset Rosalie and he thoroughly enjoyed hunting bears; something Carlisle suspected had to do with the one that had attacked him the day Rosalie had found him. Esme wasn't an issue either; his mate was the most gentle hearted creature he had ever crossed paths with and had never hunted humans. Alice seemed more than satisfied with her new diet as well, and the fact that few humans ever seemed to cross paths with them didn't hurt matters. Jasper was another issue.

While he was willing enough to try and learn the way of the Cullen lifestyle, he had been on a human diet since he was changed. His creator had brought him up in a violent lifestyle that consisted of vampires creating new born armies and battling each other for the best human hunting grounds in the south of the North American continent reaching down into the Central America's. The greatest amount of discipline he had been exposed to was his military training when he was still human that he brought with him into this existence. He had been the disciplinarian among his coven, but not the leader. Maria had manipulated him with her words and seduction, rewarded him well for how well he trained her army and quickly led her to the top of the food chain- quite literally. Carlisle could tell that Jasper was struggling with the new diet and he doubted that their luck of no humans crossing his path would last much longer. If Jasper were to revert to his former diet, would Chief Black consider it as a violation of the treaty or would he not include the two newest member of Carlisle's family part of the treaty.

"No, he would consider it a violation of the treaty and I know it" Carlisle said to himself.

"What are you going on about dear?" Esme had walked into Carlisle's office and placed her hand on his shoulder. She could tell that something was troubling him and he'd been keeping it to himself.

"I'm concerned about Jasper, well not Jasper so much as it is the treaty. Maybe it's both…" Carlisle turned toward the window once more and stared off into the woods.

"Do you think we should ask Alice if she can see anything? I mean, she seems to be pretty accurate in her visions so far, and I think she would understand if you explain your concerns to her."

"Her visions are too subjective, if someone changes their mind at the last minute it renders her vision null…. My concern is that if a human were to inadvertently cross paths with Jasper that he may not be able to control his thirst- he lived that way for so long before coming here. An inadvertent crossing of paths may not be something that Alice can predict with a high degree of accuracy. Perhaps we should consider a trip north to see our friends up in Denali. That would allow us to help Jasper make the adjustment without concerning the Quileutes, and there would be more of us to help influence what he feels about our diet. If we stay here and he slips up, then we are in violation of the treaty and we would have to find a new home once more, and I don't think that we would be able to return here again."

"Do you really think that is necessary? Jasper does understand about the treaty and what is at stake for all of us here, and he would never want to do anything that would disappoint Alice."

"I've seen the power of thirst for human blood before with others that I have lived with in the past. It's not something that is easily set aside. The frenzy that ensues once you taste it is so overwhelming that it is almost impossible to control."

"But you've done it before, with Edward, and I, Rose and Emmett…."

"It's not the same; my diet has never been one of human blood for my sustenance. What I did, it was for companionship, it was selfish, and sometimes I have questioned my decisions to make the choice to bring you into this existence. I think Rosalie will never fully forgive me for making the decision for her, she wanted so much more for her human life and while she has been much happier since finding Emmett, she still has regrets about not getting to live out the life she thought she was supposed to have. Jasper was changed by someone who not only hunted humans, but was willing to destroy our own kind to make sure she had plenty of humans to feed off of without running the risk of them figuring it out. Jasper's existence until very recently has been based off of using humans for food; he never once had to consider any other type of sustenance."

"I still think we should ask Alice if she can see anything. We've all been enjoying the house, the hunting is good here, and we hardly ever cross paths with a human unless we go looking for them. Please reconsider before asking us to leave our home; even if it is just a short trip up to Denali, this is our first real home, for all of us. When was the last time you had a home like this Carlisle? With a family? We can be ourselves here, we don't have to hide, and we can be a family" Esme pleaded with him. She knew he didn't really want to leave, but she also knew that he didn't want to violate the treaty in any way because they would not only have to leave, but that they wouldn't be able to come back. This was the first place that they had all been able to live together in, even before Alice and Jasper had shown up so unexpectedly.

Edward had heard only part of what Carlisle had been thinking, that they would have to leave their new home soon, because of Jasper. It wasn't fair! As much as he had grown to like Alice, and truly enjoyed having someone that was more of a challenge for him to play chess with, it wasn't worth losing the first family home they had been able to share since all of them had been changed. They were still the newcomers, they were still the outsiders and he wouldn't allow this to happen. Jasper was the one to blame here, not Alice –maybe their bond wasn't as strong as the other couples, he would force Jasper to leave and Alice could stay with the family if she wanted to.

* * *

AN- Thank you for those who have reviewed. This is a bit of a transitional chapter as I take some of your suggestions into consideration and see how they'll fit into my ultimate goal for this little story. You may recognize some of it in the next chapter or two :)


	8. Clearing Trees

Whatever Edward was going to do about what he perceived to be the situation regarding the Cullen's having to leave their home, he would have to be careful. If he made a hard fast decision, surely Alice would see and be able to warn Jasper, either that or tell the others and they would intervene before he could make his move. Jasper could be unpredictable in his reactions as well. Edward had seen him fighting his initial 'gut' reactions to different situations over the past few months before settling on the more peaceful path usually out of concern for Alice and her happiness. If he were to confront him head on, would he be able to take on a formerly trained soldier? He was younger than Jasper, so he was still stronger than him, but would raw strength be enough to ensure his favorable outcome, or would he make an ass out of himself? He cleared his head of such thoughts before he decided on anything, it would have to be spur of the moment or Alice would see. His timing would have to be perfect if this was going to work.

"Edward? Where are you?" Rosalie very seldom sought him out; she was usually glued to Emmett.

"What is it Rosalie?"

"We're going to go into town to do some shopping. Alice and I want to look for some new clothes and Esme wants to look for some new things too while Carlisle goes to check on a new patient of his. Do you want to come along, or can you play nice with Emmett and Jasper while were gone?"

There was that annoying little smirk of hers. Rose was definitely more like an irritating sister than what he would consider an ideal mate – what had Carlisle been thinking? "I'm sure we can manage without you while you're gone. Although I am surprised that you and Emmett can survive with that much distance between the two of you," I know it was a petty jab, but I wanted that smirk gone from her face and that did the trick. She gave me a dirty look and turned on her heels calling to the others to go. When Emmett fell in behind her I just started to laugh, the look she gave me was even more hysterical when he asked if he was invited to go too.

By the time I had finished laughing they were long gone, including Emmett. The opportunity I had been waiting for had finally arrived and this time there wouldn't be an audience around to alter the outcome. I listened for Jaspers thoughts trying to figure out where he was, outside of the house would be best. Esme would be mad if we broke anything in the house after all the hard work she had put into it. He was down by the river – perfect!

I strode down to the river, but my emotions had gotten the better of me, Jasper quickly turned toward me and took up a defensive posture.

"What could I have possibly done now to make you so mad at me Edward?"

"How about you're costing my family our first real home in a very long time!"

"What are you talking about? I thought everyone had just settled in here, not just Alice and I."

"We did! This was our first real home and we're going to have to leave it because of you! I want you gone. Alice is more than welcome to stay with us if she wants, but I won't let you take away our first true home because you won't control yourself!"

"Control myself? What do you mean? I've been following your diet, your rules, what could I have possibly done that was lacking in self-control?!"

"I'm not sure what you did! But why else would Carlisle be talking about us moving away from here already. He was talking about you and the treaty – that you would be the reason it was broken and we wouldn't just have to leave until things calmed down, that we would never be able to come back to our home ever again!"

At this point the distance between the two had closed down to nothing and they were nose to nose trying to stare one another down. Jasper was flooded by the amount of anger, and maybe even hatred coming from Edward; buried underneath it was something else he couldn't identify though. Edward pried into Jaspers' thoughts trying to see what his next move would be; he was ready for the fight.

"Back down Edward, you don't want to fight me."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you. I think a fight might be the very thing I do want from you. It will make it easier for the others to let go of you once you leave."

Jasper shoved Edward back away from him and pulled back his arm ready to levy the first blow. Edward was ready for it and blocked the first punch with ease.

"I may not be a soldier, but I'm faster and stronger than you are!"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that" Jasper grinned back at Edward.

In Forks…

Alice gasped suddenly and dropped the spool of fabric she had been holding. Esme and Rosalie turned to see a look of horror cross her face before she regained her composure in the small store. No matter what she saw, she couldn't risk exposing them in front of the humans.

"Alice, what is it dear?"

"I think we need to leave Esme, right now!"

"What's wrong?" Emmett had taken a strong liking to his new little sister and didn't like seeing her upset almost as much as he didn't like having anything upset Rosalie.

"Jasper and Edward – they're, they're fighting! We have to stop them before they hurt one another."

"Edward, fighting" Emmett scoffed, "are you sure you're not hallucinating and not having a vision?"

"They're by the river, Edward wants Jasper to leave."

"Oh no," Esme stood with her hand over her mouth thinking back to the conversation she had with Carlisle. "I'm afraid that Alice may be right. I think Edward may have heard only part of a conversation earlier and misconstrued something. We should go."

"What are you all so worried about?" Rosalie asked. "It's not like Edward can take him or anything. He's never really been in a fight with anyone, has he? Although it might be funny to watch Jasper take him down a notch or two."

"Emmett, we may need your assistance," Esme wasn't one to make requests of this nature so they all immediately fell in line with her wishes to return home. Carlisle would be able to make his way home without them so leaving without telling him would not be an issue.

The four of them moved at the painstakingly slow human pace out of town towards the trees. As soon as they were under the cover of the woods they would be able to run home, hopefully before things got too out of hand between Jasper and Edward. By the time they made it back to the house, the small clearing had grown in size somewhat with several large trees broken off near the base or just knocked over with the large root balls now hanging over gaping holes. The path of destruction worked its way toward the river and away from the house. Esme was only slightly relieved to see that they had had enough sense not to destroy their home.

Emmett ran ahead in case he was needed to separate them, or if he needed to shield the women from the fighting. What he saw next brought him up short. Jasper and Edward were still grappling with one another but they were getting close to the border lines agreed to in the treaty. They were also unaware of the rather strange audience that had gathered on the other side of the river to watch their match. Emmett stared at the incredibly large wolves, larger than any he had ever seen or heard of and the small tribe of Indians. Some of them stepped back into the trees when they saw Emmett approach. "Edward! Jasper!" he hissed at them. He wanted them to be aware of the wolves, but was afraid to make too much noise and do something that would provoke the large animals.

Both vampires froze at the sound of their names and they slowly looked in Emmett's direction. Once they realized that he wasn't staring at them, they followed his gaze across the river to the large wolves that had been watching them battle one another.

Jasper knew it could be a fatal error for any of them to make any sudden movements regardless of the enemy in question but he had to keep the others from making that tactical error. He hoped that Edward was trying to read his mind, in fact, he was betting on it to keep them all alive. _Edward, don't make any sudden movements and try not to make any noise…I don't want to do anything that would provoke them into attacking us._

Edward started to chuckle. "Jasper –they're watching us try to kill each other. We're taking care of one of their biggest problems for them –us. They aren't going to attack us, besides that would mean crossing the border and violating the treaty."

Edward slowly stood up and Jasper released him all the while he was watching this unknown enemy that he had foolishly allowed himself to ignore while he had desperately tried to best Edward. The kid had given Jasper much more than he had bargained for and he was almost relieved to have been interrupted by Emmett. At least he could try to proclaim it a draw to keep his image in place; he couldn't let Alice think he wasn't able to protect her properly.

A strange chortling sound drifted gently across the river as the three vampires continued to stare at the large wolves. Edward cocked his head to the side and muttered "What was that?" Emmett and Jasper looked at him wanting to know what he had heard.

"They're laughing at us!" Edward proclaimed. "They think that it's funny that we were fighting each other and were hoping that Emmett was going to join in."

Emmett looked cautiously at the large wolves. "How can you hear them? I didn't know you could hear animals too?"

"I can't, but I don't think that those are ordinary wolves. I think one of them is Chief Black."

"What? That's crazy! Are you sure he isn't just back in the tree line where you can't see him?"

"Emmett, Edward, perhaps we ought to move this conversation back to someplace safer, more private" Jasper interrupted. He was concerned about this strange new adversary and was afraid that they may have tipped too much of their hand already. He had no idea how long they had been watching him fight with Edward, or how strong they were.


	9. Chief Black

The wolves watched as the three male cold ones cautiously backed away from them and into the trees before hearing them break into a run. Chief Black was confused by their behavior but seeing them back away like children that had been caught doing something wrong he couldn't help but to laugh; they did not challenge them as the first cold ones had. When he had first made the treaty with the one called Carlisle several moons ago he never expected them to remain true to their word – that they did not hunt humans. Still, this new comer had not been with them when the treaty was made. Watching the two of them fight one another had piqued the curiosity of many in his tribe. He had sensed the arrival of the additional cold ones when they had first arrived but they had honored the treaty so he'd left them alone.

As a general rule, his people didn't venture into town to socialize with the pale faces, but they did occasionally go to do business, trading for convenient staples. He didn't like the parting from their ways; the white man had too many strange illnesses that they knew no cures for. They enticed his people to break from their traditions that had served them well so for so long. But with the cold ones having taken up what seemed to be a permanent residence he now used these trips into the town as a way to learn more about them, and to make sure they had not broken the treaty.

From what he had been able to learn, Carlisle was a medicine man for the pale faces, a doctor they called him. The townspeople did not know much about them, they kept to themselves and aside from the doctor, were rarely seen except for a rare trip to the store. They had also not spoken of anyone having gone missing since the cold ones arrival. The treaty was intact from what he could tell and he would not allow his people to be the first to break it in spite of his concerns.

This latest development with them fighting amongst themselves was very interesting to them. Chief Black had changed into his wolf form to sneak up on the two of them battling one another that he had hoped would be to the death. He had hidden back in the trees watching them knock over trees with the others body, slamming into anything in their path and their bodies never yielded. They never seemed to tire either. They swung fists, branches, anything they could at one another. He watched in awe, amazed that these cold ones could fight with such ferocity against one another when they lived as a normal family would have. Others from the tribe that had heard the loud noises from the ensuing battle had gathered near him watching the spectacle before them. They all new about them, he would not keep the knowledge of cold ones so close from his people; they could not risk letting their guard down when the enemy lived just over the river. The children of the tribe had been taught not to go near the river; it was easier than trying to teach them about the boundaries of the treaty. They had all heard the legends of their tribe and as far as the younger children were concerned the cold ones were just part of a story, but a couple of the older boys had been touched by the tribes magic and had transformed into wolves after the last two had arrived.

Never before in the histories of the tribe had there been tell of more than two with the magic of the wolf. He tried to remember every single detail of all the histories and not one of them had ever mentioned more than two, and they were always direct descendants – the magic flowed in their blood. He was at a crucial turning point for his small tribe and he knew what he did next would be critical. He did not want to risk a battle with so many of the cold ones, especially with the level of brutality he was witnessing. The last time their ancestors had crossed paths with the cold ones, it was only one at a time and the results had been devastating; would they be able to survive an all-out fight with so many cold ones willing to live and possibly fight together? He would need to speak with the tribal council first, but he intended to speak with Carlisle. Chief Black wanted them to leave these lands, he did not want this for his people, and he would try to convince them to leave peacefully.


	10. Aftermath

Jasper and the others ran to the house as fast as they could while trying to listen to ensure the wolves were not chasing after them. They burst through the doors and came face to face with three very angry looking women that stopped them dead in their tracks.

"Would you care to explain what on earth has gotten into you two?" Esme was not one for raising her voice and they were terrified to answer her and anger her further. Emmett stepped out of the line of fire and over to Rosalie who didn't look much happier, although there was an odd look of contentment on her face as she took in Edwards disheveled appearance.

"With all due respect ma'am, we should probably be more concerned with the wolves we just saw."

"No, Jasper, I don't care about any wolves! What I care about are my family members trying to kill one another as soon as the two of you are left alone together! Now someone had better start talking and I mean now."

Edward and Jasper looked at one another, neither sure who should speak first.

"Esme, it really wasn't that bad" Emmett offered, "I mean it looks a lot worse out there than what it was. I mean they were just wrestling with one another, look at them – no harm done….right?" He stood there with his cheesy grin waiting for Esme to soften up; that didn't happen.

"No harm done! No harm done? Take a look around Emmett! They've uprooted half the trees between here and the river and the ones they haven't uprooted they've snapped off at the base of the trunk! And look at them! Did the two of you even consider what it would do to the rest of us if you had managed to seriously harm, or even kill the other?" If she had been capable of tears, they would have been streaming down Esmes' face. She had finally gotten the big happy family she had always wanted, or so she had thought and it was falling apart. Where was Carlisle; she needed him here and he should have been done with his patient by now.

Edward and Jasper looked at one another sharing the same thought –that neither of them had stopped to think what it would do to the others if they had managed to hurt the other. Edward suddenly felt ashamed at wanting to force Jasper to leave; he was a fool to ignore what the others thought about Jasper and Alice. "I'm sorry Esme, I didn't think."

"No, you didn't! You of all people should know better than to eavesdrop on a conversation – especially when you don't fully understand what it is that you think you heard! I don't know that I've ever been so disappointed in you Edward."

"What have I walked into?" Carlisle asked as he entered the living room. He had never seen his family so upset before and was curious about why the trees had been knocked down in the yard. The obvious signs of a fight between Edward and Jasper did not escape him, but he needed to know the cause of it.

"If I may," Jasper started, "We have a more pressing matter at hand than any quarrel Edward and I were working out."

"I seriously doubt that Jasper. I won't have you two fighting, I won't have any of you fighting like this! Carlisle, talk to them, I just can't," Esme sobbed as she went upstairs to their room.

"Jasper, I'm sure you'll understand when I tell you that I have trouble believing that there could be a more pressing matter when my mate is so upset about the total lack of respect that the two of you have shown with your actions."

"Carlisle, Jaspers right, I heard something but I don't quite understand how." That should do it Edward thought, he knew Carlisle couldn't pass up the opportunity to analyze something and he quite honestly was hoping he could figure it out.

"It was really strange Carlisle, even for him. I mean, we know he can read our minds, but how can he hear animals all of a sudden?" Emmett was sincere in his asking, he really wasn't trying to divert Carlisle's attention but he also understood that there was something more urgent that needed their full attention.

"What are you talking about Emmett? Edward, what did you hear exactly?"

"I'm not quite sure I can explain it, it was so strange. Do you remember the Indians we met in the woods when we first came here, their chief?"

"Yes, of course I remember him."

"I think I heard him, but all we could see were these two really large wolves. It doesn't make any sense to me."

"There were two really big wolves watching them fight when I got there Carlisle. There were a few others watching too, but they took off when they saw me. But the wolves just sat there like they were really watching them go at each other."

"Did you cross into their territory? You didn't do anything to violate the treaty did you? Edward, you know what the rules are, what was stipulated? If you violated any portion of the treaty we will have to leave."

"Don't act like leaving is such a big deal Carlisle – it's not like you weren't just talking about leaving with Esme!" Edward was still angry at the prospect of having to leave their home. "And we didn't violate any portion of the treaty while we were fighting! I can't speak to his actions – I mean really Carlisle, if Jasper hadn't compromised the treaty why else were you and Esme talking about us all having to leave and never be able to come back here again?"

"I haven't done anything to break your rules, or the treaty! I've suffered through your miserable diet of hunting animals and denied our true nature to make everyone else happy! Don't blame me for something I haven't done. I wouldn't hurt Alice like that, and I wouldn't do that to you or Esme out of respect Carlisle."

"Jasper, no one said that you broke any of the rules….."

"Really Carlisle? It certainly sounds like it."

"But you were talking about us going to Denali, about how we wouldn't be able to ever come back if the treaty was broken. I heard you talking to Esme. Why would you even discuss it with her if it weren't an issue? This is the first real home we've ever had and I for one am not about to just walk away without a fight or at least a damned good reason!"

"Well I guess we know why you were so mad at Jasper that you were willing to swing at him." Emmett was uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was headed in. He'd been tempted to slip up on their diet as well, but would never let anyone know if he could help it. He wasn't as good as the others were about keeping his thoughts from Edward, but he'd found if he just thought about having sex with Rose he would try to ignore him. "So what are we going to do about those wolves that were watching us from across the river?"

"Emmett is right; the wolves should be our primary concern right now. I've never seen an animal watch anything like those two were looking at us. I am also worried about why they were watching us with such interest. It wasn't natural Carlisle; it struck me as if someone was assessing a target, not looking at something that was entertaining. I would most liken it to a scout gathering intelligence on an enemy to report back to his unit – something I would do if I were preparing for a battle."


	11. Wolves Watching Boxing?

Carlisle took in all that Emmet, Edward and Jasper had told him, especially Jasper. The fact that he described it as a scouting mission had him deeply concerned but he wasn't certain what they should do with this information. He also needed to know why Edward and Jasper were fighting in the first place; he had seen it in the past where competing vampires could tear apart what most would consider very strong covens. Perhaps that trip to Denali was needed, but not for the reasons Carlisle had initially thought.

"No!" seethed Edward looking at Carlisle with an anger they were unaccustomed to seeing in him.

"What is it Edward?"

"I am not leaving our home! We waited too long for this and if anything, Jasper should be the one to go – not all of us!"

Alice was crestfallen at what she had just heard; this wasn't part of what she had seen. They were supposed to be a big happy family not trying to kill one another. Jasper wouldn't do this to her, it had come from Edward; he was the one who had started the fight. "So that's it, that's why you two were fighting, that's what Esme was talking about."

Carlisle and Rosalie looked at Alice, waiting for more after her sudden outburst, but she followed Esme's lead and ran upstairs to sort out her feelings alone. Jasper was about to go after her when Carlisle stopped him, "We need to discuss a few things first Jasper, Rose will go make sure she's alright, won't you Rose?

"Of course, Emmett, stay down here in case Carlisle needs you to keep those two apart." Emmett simply nodded, he didn't like it when any woman was upset and was grateful to not have to go up with her.

"I think the fighting is finished between these two. Isn't it?"

"Yes sir" Edward and Jasper answered in unison.

"Now, Jasper, would you care to tell me what happened after we left to go into town this morning?"

"I'm not entirely sure I know what happened Carlisle, I was just standing down towards the river thinking about how much our lives have changed since we came here and Edward came after me – I could sense his anger. He accused me of costing you your first real home and I didn't know why."

"Thank you Jasper. Edward, would you care to explain your actions?"

"I heard you and Esme talking about us having to leave and that if the Quileutes felt we had broken the treaty we would never be able to come back here again. You were worried about him slipping up since he was new to our diet. This is our first real home Carlisle, I like it here and I don't want to leave! I just thought that if Jasper left that the rest of us could stay here. If we had this great big fight that you all would be glad to see him go, knowing his past and dietary preference that you would understand why I fought him."

"Edward, Alice and Jasper are part of our family now, we stand together, protect each other, we do not try to run each other off and we most certainly do not attack or fight one another like the two of you have done today."

"I wasn't trying to get Alice to leave, she could have stayed with us if she wanted, Jasper was the reason why you said we would have to go so he's the one I wanted to see gone."

"I would never leave Alice behind!"

"Of course not Jasper, we all know that. The two of you are one of the strongest mated couples I've ever seen, especially after such a short period of time. Edward will figure out just how strong the bond is between mates once he finds his."

Edward scoffed at Carlisle's remarks; he'd heard the same thing from the others repeatedly and had begun to doubt that there would ever be such a person to accompany him through this damned existence. "I thought he would jump at the opportunity to leave, especially if I gave him such an easy out as a fight. He's been miserable with our diet since he got here, and it's not like he doesn't keep thinking about going off somewhere to hunt and just come back - like we wouldn't notice the blood in his eyes!"

"It's true, I have thought about it, but I haven't acted on it, have I?"

"I've thought about it too" Emmett confessed, he felt bad for Jasper, Edward was not playing fair on this one, he knew Carlisle hated to see anything killed.

"I guess it's good to know where I stand with all of you then, that you're all just waiting for me to be the one to break the treaty you made. Tell me Carlisle, if you honestly think that I'll destroy what you've built here, then why allow me to stay? Why not just cast me back out and forbid me from ever returning?" Jasper was wounded, not from the fight with Edward, but in the lack of faith the others seemed to have in him. At least the kid had been honest enough with him and didn't try to hide it, he had confronted him directly, and hell he might actually have to admire him for it.

"Jasper, as I told Edward, we do not turn our backs on our family members. If someone is having a problem or difficulty with something, we work together to help them through it, we don't abandon them or cast them out. I don't believe that you will destroy anything we have worked to build, if anything, I believe that you will be a wonderful asset to this family. Not to mention that it would be nice to have someone around here that has a few more years on them to help put a different perspective on things. Esme and I already consider you family, we have for a while now. Going to Denali would enable you to learn from others who have already been down the path you are currently on. Going to Denali would be of benefit not only to you and Alice, but the family as a whole. Irina and Kate are much older than any of us and have a very unique perspective on things that others may not see so readily. Denali was not being discussed as a means of punishment, just as another option to help everyone make this adjustment. Everyone else in our family was brought up with my ways, and while Edward, Rosalie and Emmett have had their transgressions, they came back to our alternate lifestyle on their own accord. It was not something imposed upon them unexpectedly; I taught them to hunt animals instead of humans once I had changed them, it makes a big difference. What you are faced with is much more difficult, and we all need to understand and keep that in mind, don't we Edward? Oh, and Edward, I think it would be best for you to go upstairs and apologize to Esme...but perhaps you'd better clean yourself up first."

"Of course Carlisle, and Jasper, I am sorry for what happened earlier, I didn't have a full understanding of the situation," Edward knew that he had to set things right with Esme and part of that was going to be cleaning up the mess he and Jasper had made out in the yard. The yard would have to wait until after he talked to Esme, besides, she would most likely have some very definite ideas of what she would want. There was one other person Edward wanted to talk to as well; he needed to apologize to Alice but he felt that he should give Jasper the time to talk to her first. The more difficult part would be to talk to Jasper, to explain that he had misconstrued what little he had heard and jumped to conclusions; then again maybe he wouldn't need to bring it up with Jasper after all. What he did want to talk to him about was the large wolves. They weren't like ordinary wolves, Jasper knew it as well as he did, but Jasper had also said something to Carlisle that made him wonder if it wasn't possible for him to get a read on their emotions.

"Now Jasper, perhaps you can tell me what you meant by a 'scouting mission' with the wolves that you three saw earlier?"

"I don't know how else to describe it Carlisle, they weren't there when we started fighting, and if they were hunting, they would have had ample opportunity to avoid us. We didn't see them until Emmett arrived and called our attention to them."

"Emmett, what exactly were the wolves doing when you saw them? You said they were large?"

"Carlisle, I've never seen any wolf get anywhere near that big, I mean they were absolutely huge! They were almost the size of a bear instead of a wolf. They were just sitting across the river on the edge of the trees watching Edward and Jasper go at it. They looked like they were actually watching them fight each other, like people would watch a boxing match or something. There were a couple of the Quileute's standing further back in the trees watching too, but they took off as soon as they saw me."

"Very well, thank you both for the information. There is something that I can't quite put my finger on, so we may need to revisit this topic shortly, but for now, Jasper, I think you should probably go check on Alice. You may also want to check in on Esme afterward to see how she's going to want you and Edward to handle the damage you two have done outside." Carlisle was not expecting anything like this. He didn't know anything about extremely large wolves that exhibited human behavior, but during his time with the Volturi he had learned of the 'Children of the Moon' – werewolves and a natural enemy of vampires. But what had just been described to him did not fit that description, the moon wasn't full and it was during the day, so what exactly were they dealing with?

* * *

Chief Black stood before the council members recounting what they had seen down at the river, and how fiercely the two cold ones fought each other without seeming to harm the other one all. They all agreed that the treaty had not been violated from what they could tell, but were not certain if the cold ones would consider it a violation if any of them were to do something as bold as walking up to their home and knocking on the door.

"If we say nothing, and more come here to join them, will our magic be strong enough to protect all of us from them?"

"How many more have phased since their arrival?"

"Can you safely go to them to talk, or will they attack you?"

"Will they leave if we ask? And what if they refuse to leave, than what will happen?"

The council members threw questions out a rapid pace – many of these were the same questions that he had been asking himself over and over again. The council was turning out to be of little assistance to what Ephraim Black was trying to decide on. The future of his people depended upon his actions and he feared that if he waited too long they would all be lost.

"I have asked myself these same questions and many more. We are at a crucial point in our tribes history and what we do next will long impact our descendants. I am thinking of going to the cold ones to see if they will consider leaving, but to do so would mean crossing the boundaries I set forth in the treaty. I do not want any of us to be the ones responsible for violating treaty unless it is absolutely necessary. Now, do any of you have anything to say about going to speak to the cold ones?"

"Can you trust them not to harm you?"

"What happens if they attack you when you cross onto their land?"

"How many others will you take with you?"

"The youngest spirit warriors aren't ready yet, we should wait."

Finally, someone had said something that wasn't a question. Chief Black paced next to the fire tuning out the incessant questions, but still listening for any other useful guidance that the council may generate. He hadn't thought about taking any of the others with him, he wanted to keep their people protected and had planned on going alone – he had forgotten about the newest members of his growing pack. He stopped his pacing and turned back to the council members, he hadn't finalized his decision yet, but he could at least buy himself some time.

"I have decided to wait until the youngest warriors are ready. If the cold ones decide that they will attack us, I want the pack strong enough to defend our people. Once the young ones have mastered phasing and controlling themselves in the wolf form I will go to the one they call Carlisle and ask them to leave our lands in peace."


	12. Reconciliations

Both Edward and Jasper had made their apologies to Esme and she decided to make the best of things by using the destruction they had caused to make dramatic improvements to the yard. As it turned out, Alice had quite a knack for designing spaces as well as clothes and she and Esme had an enjoyable time redesigning the outside space. No matter what Edward's original intentions had been, the fight he had picked with Jasper seemed to have strengthened the bonds among all of the family members. As Edward and Jasper moved the trees they had downed in their fight, he tried to hear what Jasper was thinking. Jasper was picking up on the tension Edward had rolling off of him in spite of the formal apologies that had been made and the manual labor they were performing.

"Why so tense Edward?"

"What? Oh, sorry, sometimes I forget about your gift."

"Are you going to tell me, or are you going to make me just as tense as you are?"

"Sorry, I was just thinking about the wolves. They weren't regular animals, and I know that I wasn't picking up someone else's thoughts. Did you notice anything else about them; could you tell what they were feeling?"

"My focus was on you, you put up a hell of a fight for someone with no formal training. Until Emmett had interrupted us, they had escaped my attention." Jasper was still mad at himself for not having noticed them sooner, he had a nagging feeling that he had made a grave tactical error, but to what extent he had no idea.

"I know, I think that they were watching us too, and not just for entertainment purposes."

"Less chatting, more moving" Alice sang as she danced over to them. She was glad to see the two of them talking to one another as civil beings, the fight bothered her deeply especially since she hadn't seen it coming.

"Yes my love" Jasper said as he scooped her up kissing her lightly on the lips, he was not as comfortable as Emmett and Rosalie were with such public displays of heavy affection. She favored him with a sweet smile as he gently put her back down on her feet before her eyes went distant.

"Alice, tell me, what is it? What do you see?"

"Snow, lots of snow" she replied almost as though she were in a trance. "The wolves are watching us and we are going to where the snow is plentiful ….."

Edward and Jasper looked at each other, what was it with these wolves, and why were they turning into something so prominent in such a short period of time?

"Carlisle, what are you thinking about?" Esme asked as they watched Edward and Jasper finish cleaning up the clearing to her specifications.

"I'm concerned about our family."

"I think they will work things out between them, but it may take them a little bit longer than any of us had expected. You have to remember that Edward was used to having you all to himself in the beginning, and I think the reason why he accepted me so easily was because of his human life, he was used to a traditional family setting with a mother and father. Rose, you had hopes for her becoming his mate, but they turned out to have more of a sibling rivalry than an attraction for one another. They both drive the other one crazy, but it is done with a degree of affection that I can best describe as brother and sister. When she brought Emmett to you, Edward didn't see him as a threat to any of our relationships, he was her mate by her choosing. He was a brother, by marriage if you will, but still a brother to Edward because of Rose. Jasper and Alice are the first ones that had no logical ties to any of us, Edward has no point of reference for his relationship to them. You need to remember that he was only 17 when you changed him, he was lacking in human experiences that the rest of us had to pull with us into this life."

Carlisle sighed, "As always my dear, you are right. Edward has been with me the longest and I do tend to forget that he didn't have the same opportunities to experience what comes with young adulthood. But at the same time, I don't think any of us were prepared for the entrance of two such unique individuals as Jasper and Alice into our coven."

"They are definitely unique, but in a good way don't you think? Jasper is quiet and makes him appear off-standish, but he really does have a good heart. And Alice is pure joy, how could anyone possibly resist such a bubbly personality?"

"I think Edward has no issues with accepting Alice, my concern is with Jasper. There seems to be some sort of rivalry or jealousy he has towards him."

"But look at how well they can work together towards a common goal Carlisle," she said gesturing to the clearing that they had nearly finished cleaning up to her specifications. "See, they are talking to one another in a civil manner? Just give them some time and I'm sure they will come around to a more peaceful and understanding coexistence."

"You are probably right, but there is something else that concerns me about our family. I can't help but think about what the boys had said about those wolves that they saw. Something isn't right about them, and I seriously doubt that Edward has suddenly developed the skill of hearing the thoughts of animals. I feel like I am missing something crucial to our happiness here, and I don't think it has anything to do directly with any of our family members. I keep trying to remember everything that I learned about when I was with the Volturi and while I can come close to one item in particular, there are some key points that don't fit, they simply don't match up."

Esme wrapped her arms around Carlisle wanting to comfort him, but unsure about how she should proceed. It was unlike him to not be able to quickly rationalize something out and come up with some sort of answer or prudent plan of action. She was concerned about him, but now she was starting to worry if there wasn't something else that should have her even more troubled. She quickly decided to focus on the interpersonal issues the family was contending with and leave the business with the wolves to Carlisle and the others to sort out; Esme was not willing to sacrifice her family for anything. Then she thought back to the conversation she had had with Carlisle that seemed to have started this whole mess, the option of going to Denali may be of more benefit than just to help Jasper adjust to their diet. Denali may hold the key to strengthening the family bonds she was determined to preserve, and it would allow them to focus on building their relationships instead of some stupid animals that had caught their attention.

"Carlisle," Esme began carefully, "What if the sisters know of something that could help us? What I mean is, I don't want to leave here, but maybe Denali could help shed some light on those wolves that have everyone so pre-occupied. I have to agree with Edward though; I truly do like it here and want to be able to come back here again. This place really does feel like we are home for the first time in so very long and while I'm not ready to leave it just yet, I can't help but feel that it may be for the best for us to maybe go away for a little while. Just until you can find an answer to what you are looking for, and maybe help Jasper with the transition over to our diet – to make it easier for him?"

"Perhaps we should call everyone together and discuss our options. We haven't been here very long, and I do have a few patients that still require some looking after; I have one that's expecting her first child shortly that has had some complications that I would really prefer not to leave until after she delivers…."

"Then we'll wait until after the baby comes Carlisle, I won't have it any other way. Now tell me, how much longer does she have until the baby comes? Do you know if it will be a boy or a girl, I mean is she carrying high or low? Do I know her family, you know how much…"

"Now, now my dear, you know I can't go into all of that with you – doctor patient confidentiality you know," he said kissing her on top of her head. He loved his wife and knew that she had a soft spot in her heart for babies, but he also felt slightly guilty about using his patients as an excuse for delaying their departure. He did want to go to Denali to see what he could learn about these wolves and he did want to finish caring for his patients….

"You know, you could make a quick trip up to Denali…"

"Are you reading my thoughts now too?" Carlisle chuckled.

"I just know how you think, and that you won't be able to rest until you find some answers about these wolves that have you boys so fascinated. And I also know that you really don't want to leave your patients right now. Maybe you could take Jasper and Edward up with you, give them a chance to bond with one another?"

"I don't think Edward would be overly interested in a trip to Denali right now. Besides, I don't think it would be wise to reduce our numbers down in case the wolves do turn out to be something of a concern. I do like the idea of bringing Jasper up for him to talk to the sisters about switching over to our diet, and Alice won't let him out of her sight, so of course she would be going with us."

"You may be right about Edward, he does seem more at peace here, and he's made it very clear that he isn't ready to leave. But we should still have a little sit-down with everyone to talk about the trip, especially before anyone has the chance to overhear or misconstrue anything."

"Before we talk to anyone about the possibility of this trip, I want to go looking for these wolves and see for myself what has Jasper and Edward so enthralled with them. The last thing we need to do at this point is to run off without having a better understanding of what it is we may be dealing with. Plus, it will give me the opportunity to go back into town to check on my patients before heading off."


	13. The Humans

The Humans….

"Charles, isn't there something else that I can do?" Clarisse asked her husband. Her pregnancy had not gone as well as they had hoped, but she had made it to her last trimester and Dr. Cullen had assured her last week that the baby was still doing well. She was terrified that she was going to miscarry as she had with the last two and her doting husband was doing everything he could to make things as easy for her as he possibly could. He'd even enlisted the neighbors help in keeping her off of her feet as much as they could while he was at work.

"Clarisse, you know that Dr. Cullen said with your history you needed complete bed rest with it being so close to when the baby is supposed to arrive. I don't want you to go through that heartache again, so you will just have to be satisfied with knitting booties and allowing us to help with taking care of the house. Look at it this way, once the baby gets here, you won't be able to rest up like this again so try to make the most of it, okay?" What he didn't tell her was that he couldn't stand to go through the heartache of losing another baby either. At least the women would let her cry on their shoulders, the men would only ridicule him for such an emotional outburst.

"Mrs. Newton will be over shortly to help you out with whatever you need while I'm down at the mill. We're supposed to have a fairly large order come through today so I might be later than usual getting home. I don't want you to wait on me for supper, you are to keep to your schedule and eat without me if it gets too late."

"Charles, could we get anyone other than Mrs. Newton to keep me company? You know she only does it so she can gossip about my pregnancies with the women in her sewing circle. I just always feel like she's prodding me even more than the doctor does, except she just tries poking around in my head."

"It's just for today, alright? I tried to get Nora to come keep you company, but she just got back from Seattle late yesterday. She promised to come sit with you the rest of the week to make up for, how did she put it? Oh yes, for abandoning you to the miseries of your most favorite person. I couldn't tell if she was laughing or crying the way she was going on. Sometimes I wonder why you enjoy her company so much."

"Nora is great fun! She and I share so many interests and we have loads of fun together, I can talk to her without worrying about it being spread all over town before she walks through her front door. That's more than what anyone can say about Mrs. Newton."

A quick, hard knock came at the door to their home and Clarisse sighed as Charles hung his head knowing that his wife would be enjoying her day about as much as he would his at work for the day. What she had said was true, Mrs. Newton was the worst gossip in Forks, and she never showed an ounce of remorse for anything she said, no matter how personal or inappropriate it was. The truth was, many of their neighbors were afraid to stay with Clarisse, they were afraid she would lose this child while under their watch while he was away. They would run any errands that needed to be done or bring over meals while he was at work, but they were afraid to be alone in the house with his wife in her current state; something he didn't have the heart to tell her and was terrified the woman he was about to let into their home would. Mrs. Newton was a last resort until his wife's best friend returned from her trip, and while he didn't always understand Nora, she was a loyal and trustworthy friend. He put his best smile on before opening the door for her, he needed her help and the least he could do was be pleasant.

"Good morning Mrs. Newton, thank you so much for coming over to keep an eye on Clarisse while I go to work. I wouldn't impose on you if there was any way for me to get the time off; we just have a really big order right now and they need all of us at the mill."

"Don't you worry about it Charles, you know I don't mind helping Clarisse out in her delicate condition. It would be absolutely tragic for her to lose another baby, especially now that she's getting so close. I still don't know if I'd trust that new Dr. Cullen with her if I were you, he just strikes me as being odd."

"Clarisse has been doing extremely well under his care Mrs. Newton, and he came from a big hospital out in Chicago. She's lying on the couch for now, she is not to go up the stairs under any condition, no matter what she says, the doctor has advised against it. Thank you again for spending the day with her, we really do appreciate it." Charles walked into the small living room to give his wife a kiss goodbye and to lay his hand on her swollen belly, "You two take care of one another today, alright?"

"We'll be fine dear, now off you go, you don't want to be late for work." She gave her husband a weak smile as she gave his hand a quick squeeze.

"She's right Charles- off to work with you. I promise to take good care of her for you."

Charles gave his wife another look and smiled as he mouthed "I love you" to her so Mrs. Newton wouldn't see or hear him. That was the last thing he needed, that wretched woman spreading anymore gossip about their personal lives around town. Forks wasn't anywhere near as big as Seattle, in fact it was so small it was almost hard to call it a town. The only reason why the little town even existed was for the lumber industry, and if it weren't for the mill, the only inhabitants probably would have been that small tribe of Indians that lived down by La Push Beach. His only hope would be that Clarisse would make it safely through the day until he could return to her that evening. He didn't like being away from her, he was terrified something would happen to her or the baby, and he hated Mrs. Newton for what she had said about the other lost pregnancies. Clarisse wasn't the only one who had lost those babies, he had lost those children and hurt just as much as she did, the only difference was he had to go off into the woods to cry his tears of pain.

They had both been daughters, and both stillborn. The doctors had told him that Clarisse was most likely incapable of bearing any children and that they might be wise to consider not trying again –one had even told him another pregnancy could quite possibly kill his wife. Truth be told, he felt guilty as hell that his wife was pregnant again, he didn't want to risk her life in exchange for fatherhood. Clarisse had convinced him to try one last time; that she didn't want to be a complete failure to him as a wife. Those words had ripped at his already battered heart and to see tears in her beautiful brown eyes was more than he could stand so he had conceded. He had ignored the whispers around the small town about the strange new doctor that had arrived in the early fall, and had approached him when he had seen him in town for the first time. He was unnerved by the man's strangely colored eyes and at how cold his hands always seemed to be but he struck him as being an educated man in more ways than just medicine and had asked him to check on his wife. As he walked to work he thought back to that first meeting they had shared with the doctor in their humble home.

"Clarisse, I've brought someone for you to meet."

She had walked out of the kitchen wiping her hands on a dish towel, she hadn't begun to show yet, and it may have been foolish for him to bring around a doctor so early on in her pregnancy, but he didn't want to take any chances at all this time.

"Hello, Mrs. Swan, I'm Dr. Cullen, but you may call me Carlisle if it makes you feel more comfortable."

"Hello doctor, please come in. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit this evening?"

"Well Clarisse, may I call you Clarisse?" She nodded her consent as they all walked to the living room. "Your husband has asked me to be your physician and watch over you during your pregnancy. He said you've had complications in your previous pregnancies and lost both children."

"Yes doctor."

"Please, you don't need to be so formal with me. If I am to care for you, we will need to go over your medical history. I am sorry, I know how painful this must be for both of you to have to relive those tragic times, but it is important if we are going to ensure you have a successful pregnancy this time."

The doctor had spoken of not only the pain of his wife, but his as well that night, something no one else had ever done before, or since for that matter. It was that conversation that had convinced Charles that Dr. Cullen would be the best possible chance they would have at realizing their dream of becoming parents to something other than agonizing memories and broken hearts. Clarisse had taken to the doctor as well.

"Where should I begin?"

"Why don't you tell me about your first pregnancy? How old were you when you first conceived, when did you first experience any discomfort or complications, how far along were you when you lost the baby, that sort of thing." The doctor knew he was asking painful questions, but they both understood that it was necessary for him to understand as much as he could if they were to be successful this time.

"The first time I was 19, and at first things seemed as though they were going well, it was a few months after we had gotten married," Clarisse explained as she squeezed her husband's hand for reassurance, he squeezed back. "We were so excited, I started to decorate the second bedroom as a nursery, then the morning sickness started when I was about three months along. It was all pretty normal until I finished up my sixth month or so, that's when the morning sickness came back, except it was different that time – it was so much worse than what it had been in the beginning, it was painful. About a week after the morning sickness came back I started…I started to…" Clarisse broke down in tears. She had never spoken about losing either of her pregnancies in this way, at least not that Charles had heard. The other doctor who had cared for her during the second pregnancy had never asked such things. He had told them that this sort of thing happened and all you could do was just move on like it hadn't happened.

The conversation continued on after Clarisse had regained her composure and the doctor had asked if she could go on. This man had showed compassion unlike any other doctor they had met before and he actually listened to what both of them had to say. Clarisse had even managed to tell him what she had never told anyone other than Charles about the fall on the stairs during the second pregnancy. He remembered being mad at her for being so clumsy when the doctor had first told them that they baby had died. Then he looked into her eyes and saw the torment and personal hell that she would never speak of to anyone, the look that said she would forever blame herself for killing their child. He was completely crushed; that doctor had shown no compassion, he just said that he would have to help him deliver the stillborn infant if he wanted to keep his wife from dying. Charles had thrown him out of the house after he knew his wife was physically okay, emotionally he doubted either one of them would be alright again.

Charles reflected back on all of this as he walked towards the mill. He was worried, but comforted at the same time knowing that they had been fortunate to find Dr. Cullen in their small corner of the world. As he reached the main road that led to the mill, a truck came rattling down the road towards him. He recognized it before he could even see the occupants; it was from the reservation and belonged to the Clearwater family. Unlike some of his coworkers, he didn't mind the Quileutes, they were hard workers and, in his experience, good natured and honest. He couldn't say as much for some of the townsfolk, including the one he had entrusted his wife to for the day.

As the truck approached him, it slowed down enough for one of the occupants to holler at him to jump in the back. He did so gladly, in his reminiscing he had lost track of the time and would have been late if not for the ride. He sat with three others in the back of the truck that he didn't know – they all just nodded at him briefly knowing they wouldn't have picked him up if he wasn't a friend to them.


	14. Family Meeting

Family Meeting

"What is it Carlisle?" Emmett asked as he and Rosalie sat down with the others at the large dining room table.

"A family meeting Carlisle, really?" Edward lamented, Rosalie just rolled her eyes at him.

"Our first family meeting Jasper, isn't it wonderful?" Alice cooed.

"Now, now Alice, it's nothing that exciting," Esme assured her.

"I want to hear all about the trip to the place with all of the snow Carlisle!" Carlisle and Esme exchanged looks before Alice continued on, "I had a vision about a place with lots of snow on the ground earlier."

"What is she talking about?" Rosalie asked.

"We would like to talk to all of you about the wolves, and the possibility of some of us, and I emphasize only some of us going up to Denali for a short trip. It is my intention to only go for a short while to try and learn more about these wolves."

"What do you mean by only some of us would be going?" Edward asked looking for the clarification he so desperately wanted. He wanted to know that Carlisle wasn't going to ask him to leave his home, he wanted to know that he could stay in the first place that had ever made him feel close to being normal since he had been changed, since he had lost his human family.

"I am concerned about what you and Jasper have said about the wolves; I don't believe it would be wise for all of us to go. I also don't believe that it would be a very good idea for us to be gone for very long."

"What are your intentions Carlisle? Specifically who is to go with you and why" Jasper asked. He knew what Alice had seen in her vision, and just wanted to be done with it. The emotions were running higher at the table than what he was comfortable with.

"My thinking was that you and Alice would accompany me up to Denali. We have family up there that may be of assistance to us. The sisters would also offer you the opportunity to talk to someone who has gone through the same transition in diet that you have been dealing with since the two of you came to live with us. Irina and Kate are very old, much older than I am by centuries. They are the source of more than one legend that the humans have fabricated over the years. I must warn you though Alice, they are the source of the succubus legends and they have no inhibitions about approaching any man."

"The rest of us would stay here Carlisle?" Emmet was surprised that Carlisle would not be taking Esme or Edward with him. If anything, he was almost disappointed, it had been a long time since he and Rosalie had been completely alone to do whatever they please to one another without having to worry about the others being around to hear them. They used to think it was funny having sex whenever and where ever the urge struck them until Esme had taken them to a house several miles away from the rest of them and quite pointedly told them to get it out of their systems, she didn't want to have to listen to that all of the time.

"Emmet, could you please keep your thoughts to yourself, I most certainly don't need to relive any of those memories from my own perspective, much less yours!" Edward grimaced; sometimes being able to hear what the others were thinking could really gross him out. Who wanted to have to see their sister like that, even if they weren't biologically connected?

"Can we please focus? I for one would like to hear what Carlisle has to say, and to know when we will be leaving. I'll need to make sure I have the appropriate clothing if we're going to Alaska, I've never been that far north before." Alice knew that they would be going; she just didn't have a set time. Her visions were usually fairly accurate, but she could never seem to pinpoint the exact time that anything would happen.

"As I was saying, Alice, Jasper and I will travel to Denali. It is not my intention to stay for very long, but Alice and Jasper may stay longer if they would like."

"Why won't you be staying with us the whole time Carlisle?"

"I have patients in town that require my attention Jasper, to include one lady who has a sad history of miscarrying late in her pregnancies. They are depending upon me and I promised them I would be here to see her through until she delivers."

"I still don't fully understand this connection you have with the humans Carlisle. You are truly unlike any other vampire I have ever crossed paths with."

"Jasper, I have practiced medicine in many different forms since I came into this existence, and I must be honest when I say that the birth of a child has always been miraculous to me. My very first patient of sorts was a pregnant woman that I helped deliver a daughter back in Europe. I was still fairly new to this life and hadn't even realized what I had done and how much blood there was until after the baby was safely in her mother's arms. I must be honest with you, I ran from that house terrified that I had been so careless as to expose myself to all that blood but then I was amazed that I had been able to control my thirst and focus on the patient instead."

"What should we do about the wolves while you are away?" Edward knew there was something else and didn't want things getting sidetracked.

"Before we go anywhere Edward, I want you and Jasper to accompany me on a hunting trip of sorts."

"What kind of hunting trip? I'm pretty sure that you're not talking about getting something to eat."

"Jasper, you said you felt like they were observing you, and Edward, you said that you thought you heard the thoughts of Chief Black, but all any of you could see were these two large wolves, no one else was around that you could tell. Is that correct?"

"Yes. What do you want us to hunt, and perhaps more important is how?" Jasper was curious to see what Carlisle had in mind and liked the idea of doing a reconnaissance mission of their own.

"I want to spend a bit more time trying to learn what we can about the wolves that you saw. I want to see if either or both of you can use your gifts to track them down. Before we decide on a course of action, I would like to have a better understanding of what exactly we are up against. I am not nearly as familiar with the workings of your gift as I am with Edwards, but I think we should try everything we have at our disposal to gather as much information as possible."

"Maybe I can help too? I mean, I can't always make my visions come to me, but sometimes if I concentrate on something really hard, I can see more. It's like when I was waiting for Jasper, I just kept thinking about him and I had an easier time seeing him and the diner where were destined to meet at."

"I didn't realize you had that kind of control over your visions Alice." Carlisle was even more curious about her gift than he was when she had first arrived. He had been under the impression that her visions were completely at random and that she couldn't control what she saw or when she could see something. This was something he would most certainly have to explore in greater detail when they had more time, but for now, her gift may be of great use to them in tracking down these wolves.

"I wouldn't say that I can control what I see, more like influence how often I might see something. I just have to focus on it and I usually have better luck at picking something up, that's all. That's how I finally found the river, and you."

"I think the river may be a very good place to start, since that is where you first saw them. Emmett, I want you to show me exactly where you were standing when you first noticed the wolves. Jasper, Edward, I want both of you to go to where you were at when you first noticed something with your gifts, not when you saw them, but when you first felt or heard something. We'll need to be careful, it gets close to the boundary set forth in the treaty, just remember that the river is a dividing line between our land and theirs and to stay on our side. I don't want the treaty violated under any circumstances, is that clear?"

"Yes sir." They answered him in unison.

"Carlisle, I think it would be best if we stick together, at least in pairs, to be on the safe side. It wouldn't be wise to allow ourselves to be separated or rendered vulnerable against something we aren't familiar with, from a tactical standpoint that is."

"Agreed Jasper, we'll start off together where you first spotted them, then we'll see what we can find before we split up into smaller groups. I think we should wait for nightfall before we start looking, there will be less chance of anyone being out in the woods or us being seen."

* * *

AN: Sorry for the delay in posting this update - I was waiting to hear back from someone and still haven't gotten a response. The next chapter will be more focused on Jasper & Alice, so please let me know if you have any ideas. If you have any complaints/comments/suggestions/likes/dislikes about the story so far, please review or message me. You can't make something better if you don't know whats wrong! Thanks for reading!


	15. Jasper & Alice

Jasper & Alice

"Alice, are you sure we've done the right thing?"

"What do you mean? The right thing about what?"

"About coming here, to try and live like humans do, or at least as close as our kind can come to living like them? I can't help but think that this goes against the ways of our kind, that's all."

"Jasper, what are you talking about? I thought you were happy here. Aren't you happy here, with me?"

"I am happy anywhere as long as you are with me," Jasper told her as he leaned over and kissed her passionately on the lips. "Anywhere with you is the happiest I have been in my existence, always."

She smiled back at him coyly, "Then what seems to be the problem sir?"

"The problem, the problem is mine I believe."

"Are you going to just keep teasing me, or are you going to make me drag it out of you so slowly that it will take all night?"

"I don't know, maybe it's just me. Maybe it's because I've lived such a different existence than these Cullens' have – feeding off of animals instead of humans. It's not natural to me. I feel like I am in a constant battle against my natural instincts, I just want to hunt like we were meant to."

"Jasper, what are you saying? You haven't done anything…." Alice trailed off knowing the answer and how such a question would hurt his feelings, offend him and his honor.

"No! Of course not! I made you a promise that I would try my hardest to live like they do. I can't lie to you and tell you how difficult it is, especially when one of them starts to think about doing the same thing. I have kept my word, to you and to Carlisle and I have honored their treaty but I feel like my resolve is slipping. I don't want to disappoint you; I don't want to break my promise to you or let you down. I know how important coming here was for you."

"Then why ask now, I mean, we've been here for several months now. If you weren't happy, why didn't you tell me? You do know you can tell me anything, don't you?" Alice felt horrible, she had brought them here strictly off of a vision she had had. She had not given pause to what Jasper would feel about this dramatic change to his way of life, to his most basic instinct of feeding off of the humans. She realized that she had forgotten that he had been living as a soldier training new born vampires for such a very long time, more than what some of them had even been in existence. It was no wonder he was unhappy with this new life. "I am a complete idiot, aren't I?"

"You most certainly are not, far from it as a matter of fact. And would you please stop feeling so horrible, it hasn't been all that bad, and if it has been, it is my fault for not doing something to change it before now. The question is what happens if I do slip up? I don't want to cause any problems for this coven; they have been most gracious to us."

"You won't slip up, and if I do see you getting close to it, I can warn you so you don't."

"But what if you don't see it coming, what if I ruin this home for everyone, especially you?"

"You won't ruin anything for me. I've seen it. We're going to all be one big happy family for quite a long time. And you do remember what family is about, don't you? Family means that even if you do slip up, they help you through the rough spots, pick up the pieces, move on and forgive one another. Even you, so please stop worrying yourself about it."

"I know that you are probably right"

"There is no 'probably' about it Jasper, now can we move on to more pleasant topics?"

"Not yet. This is really important Alice. I need to make sure you understand what is at stake here. This family, this coven, is unlike any I have ever seen in my entire existence. The only time I have ever experienced such a large number of vampires living together is when there is an army involved."

"You don't mean to tell me you are worried about the Cullen's building an army do you? I can't imagine them trying to attack anyone – especially Carlisle!"

"No, no, it's not that at all. I don't know how to explain it exactly, you have such a different past than most of our kind, I don't know if I can tell you so you have a full appreciation of what such a group means. When most are changed, there are typically only a small handful of reasons why they were created. Maria changed me because she wanted to make use of my military training; my ability to control emotions was an unexpected bonus. She had traveled with only two others the night I crossed paths with her, and as soon as one had crossed her, she destroyed her."

"But you said you trained so many for her. I thought that you lived with a large group, much larger than this?"  
"I did, but only for a few months at a time. Maria only kept the new borns around long enough to suit her needs. Once they had fulfilled their purpose, once they weren't useful enough for her to bother with them any longer, she had me destroy them. Most of our kind travel alone, or in pairs, like we did before we came here. Very rarely you may find a trio traveling together, but that's only if someone happens across their mate and one of them was traveling with someone else or something. It just isn't normal for vampires to live as, as a human family would. I honestly have to question how long they can maintain this type of existence. I wonder how long they can maintain their diet, if the diet has anything to do with them being able to live like this. There are just so many questions and I am having a really hard time seeing any answers that make sense to me."

Alice contemplated what Jasper had just confided in her. Many of these were thoughts that she had not given much, if any consideration. She reflected back on her previous visions of what their life was supposed to be after joining with the Cullens. She had not seen anything to give her any indication that this family was a ticking time bomb. They were more peaceful than others of their kind, and they were stable. This wasn't a random group of nomads, this wasn't a coven craving power or looking to grow their numbers to create an army of any sort. They wanted to live a peaceful life, amongst the humans if it were at all possible, and they were doing a very good job of it from what she could tell.

"Jasper, I can understand why you have these concerns, but I just don't see any of that. I've tried to look for any sign of danger before coming here, and since we've arrived. They're peaceful. Everything that I've seen has been a long standing, happy family – with us a part of it. I don't think we can stay here forever, not by any means, but at least a few years and then we'll go with them to the next place."

"What if we cross into the wrong vampires territory? A group this large won't go unnoticed; we'll be a target for other covens to attack. What if they head South, to where Maria still hunts? Do you think they'll listen to anything that we may have to tell them?"

"All these questions, just have some faith will you? You're going to hurt my feeling by placing such little faith in me. Besides, I think that Carlisle is extremely fair minded and would take anything into consideration, especially if it is to keep his family safe."

"I know that you are probably right, it just keeps playing in the back of my mind, I can't shake the thought."

"Maybe we should talk to Carlisle. He'd answer any questions you have, maybe that would make you feel better."

"Do we have to talk to him right now, or can we do something else that I know will make us both feel better?" Jasper wrapped his arms around her and tried to kiss her when she deftly maneuvered out of his arms leaving him looking confused.

"Not here. I would prefer to go somewhere a bit more secluded. I would like for us to be completely alone for what I have in mind for you!"

Alice gave him a quick kiss on the lips and grabbed his hand as they ran out of the house without a word to anyone, out into the woods. She didn't stop until they were miles away, and sure that they wouldn't be heard. "Now Major Whitlock, whatever do you plan to do with me?"

Jasper smiled at her knowingly as he stepped towards her as if he was hunting a totally different kind of prey. Alice giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him the kiss he had sought before they left the confines of their bedroom.

As they teased one another before giving in fully to their desires, they failed to notice two large wolves across the river. The wolves watched the two vampires during their extremely private moment and once they had assessed the situation, decided this was one activity they did not have any interest in observing further. The cold ones had not crossed the border, and it was apparent they were not out hunting. The only further thought Chief Black gave to what they had just witnessed was how passionate they were for being so cold.


	16. Hodge Podge

A few weeks later….

The economy around the country was still suffering miserably, but it was starting to show small signs of recovery. Even the small community called Forks was starting to see a significant difference, Forks and the Quileute Reservation. Ephraim was not blind to what was happening around his people, he could see it around the reservation on an almost daily basis. More and more of his people were going off the reservation to work with the pale faces – he did not like it, but also knew it couldn't be stopped. As much as his tribe had been isolated prior to the start of the depression, they did not see the same hardships as others had – they were still capable of being self-sufficient for many things. When the mill opened, his people weren't happy about them coming to cut down the forest but they soon learned that if they worked there, they could show them other places to go without having their most sacred places destroyed and protect their homes. As chief, he allowed it, protecting the land was important and he had no other way to stop it from what he could see.

It had saddened him to see more of the men from his tribe go to work there, but he could hardly argue that the money they earned wasn't needed and it was one of the few places that would even hire the Indians. Originally it was only a couple of the Clearwater men, they were smart and knew how to keep the best interest of the tribe at the forefront of their minds and actions without tipping their hand to the white man so he wouldn't know what they were actually doing, steering them away from their lands. The Uley boys were the most recent of the tribe to go to the mill for work. The only condition that he put forth was that they try to stick together as much as possible, to watch out for one another. It was not unheard of for men to get crushed by the huge logs being process at the mill, and he was worried one of his people could get hurt; some of the white men had complained about his people taking jobs away from their kind.

At least the Clearwater's had managed to make friends with some of the white men; one they told him of was of particular interest to the Chief. The man's name was Swan and he had a wife with child, what he found of particular interest about this was who the doctor was caring for the pregnant woman. The Cold One he had made the treaty with, Carlisle. He encouraged their friendship; he wanted to learn what they could from this man, especially about the doctor that was treating his wife. The Uley's weren't as social and were making things difficult for the young friendship, they were great at creating tension where ever they went. He would need to talk to them about that. He wanted the information on the man the townspeople were calling "Doctor Cullen".

* * *

"Honey? I'm home" Charles called out to his wife as he came through the front door. They shift at the mill had been long and the work grueling. All day long his wife and their unborn child kept creeping into his thoughts; he wanted to make sure that they were both alright. They were getting close to when the baby was due and while he wanted to be excited about it, he was actually terrified. He was terrified that this time he was going to lose both of them, another child would be devastating, but to lose Clarisse would destroy him entirely.

"In the living room Charles" a familiar voice rang out to him – Nora was here. Charles walked into the living room to see the two women whispering excitedly to one another. Nora was starting to show now, and they were comparing notes that only pregnant women seemed to share with one another.

"Good evening ladies."

"Hello dear, how was your day?" Clarisse asked as her husband leaned over to kiss here gently on the forehead. It was getting more difficult for her to get up off the sofa and the doctor had ordered strict bed rest.

"It was long, and I missed you terribly. How are you feeling? Has the doctor come by yet?"

"No, Doctor Cullen hasn't stopped by yet; I'm almost beginning to think that he's forgotten about us this evening."

"I've been hoping to finally meet this doctor, maybe he'll take care of me when the time comes" Nora mused out loud while she gently patted her belly.

"When are you and Robert expecting the arrival of your bundle of joy?" Charles was happy for them; they had been trying for quite some time and were starting to think that they would find themselves among the childless in their small community. He could feel for them, he didn't want anyone to know the disappointment of not being blessed with a child of their own – something he was terrified was his own destiny. His thoughts were interrupted by a knock at their door.

* * *

"Carlisle, don't you have to go into town to check on some of your patients?" Esme knew he was distracted by the upcoming trip to Denali and trying to learn all he could about the strange wolves they had been trying to find for the past couple of weeks. She also knew that the one woman he cared for had to be getting very close to her due date, and she had lost two other babies before- one of the horrors she did remember from her own human life. She didn't know the woman's name, just general information that Carlisle didn't mind discussing, the rest she had overheard on the occasional trip into Forks for supplies to keep up appearances. The women in that town were overly cruel in Esmes' mind – they had no business talking about how Clarisse Swan was incapable of having children and the rude speculations that went along with it.

"What? Oh, yes, appointments in town. I just need to check on Mrs. Swan to make sure she hasn't started dilate, otherwise we may have to push back our Denali trip. I finally received a letter back from Tanya, Kate & Irina, they are quite excited about meeting Alice and Jasper."

"Carlisle, you do realize that it is almost 6:00 – dinner hour is just about over for the humans and you haven't even begun to get ready." Esme wasn't one for scolding her mate, but this wasn't like Carlisle to lose track of the time and his obligations as the town doctor. He didn't have many patients, only a small handful, and she knew that the Swan woman had a friend that wanted to have Carlisle assist her with her pregnancy as well. Esme had met Nora the day she was in town absolutely gushing with the news that she and her husband had finally conceived. The other women had congratulated her to her face but as soon as she was out of ear shot they gossiped just as fiercely about her as they had her friend. "Weren't you supposed to be at the Swans to not only check on her, but to meet with her friend as well?"  
"Esme, dear, why are you going on about this?"

"Look at the time Carlisle, you're going to have to run at top speed to make it, and you're still going to be a bit late."

"Good Lord! Where did the time go? I could've sworn I just looked at the clock and it said three…"

"You've been focused on the wolves and Denali dear. Now get your things and go!"

* * *

**AN- I know this is a short chapter, and a hodge podge of sorts, but if you stick with me, you'll see where all of this is headed. Thank you to those of you who have added this to your favorites/followed stories. Please review and/or give feedback. The Denali clan will be coming into the story line as well as another wolf sighting for the Cullens. I'm still trying to decide if the mill will become more relevant or fall into the background. And in case any of you are wondering, Charles and Clarisse Swan are ultimately Bella's great-grandparents (I couldn't resist tying them together somehow.) **

**I am sorry for not updating as quickly as I did at the beginning, life has gotten in the way as well as some health stuff that has to be taken care of. Anyhow, let me know what you think! Are there any character's you'd like more on, complaints, suggestions, etc. Thanks for reading!**


	17. Running Late

Carlisle quickly gathered his medical bag and ran as fast as he possibly could –how could he have allowed himself to become so distracted that he had forgotten about his patients! There was just something strange about those wolves. There had been no sign of them since Edward and Jasper had fought one another down by the river. The letter he received from the three sisters hadn't yielded too much information for him either. Kate, Irina and Tanya were more interested in the newest members of his family and only made a cursory response to his inquiry on the wolves. Of course Tanya wanted to know if Edward would be coming along with Carlisle, she just never gave up that one. Edward was always gracious about her unwelcomed advances, but ever the gentleman, always sidestepped her when she got too aggressive. On the rare occasion when she absolutely flat out refused to give up her chase, Carlisle would just stand back and laugh as Edward would take off running as fast as he could until she found something else to toy with.

Carlisle allowed his thoughts to wander as he ran to the small home on the outskirts of the town. He could only beat himself up so much for losing track of the time, now he had to get to his patient as quickly as he could. It would not do well for his reputation if he was late or missed appointments with his patients. Not to mention Esme would be horribly upset with him if anything were to go wrong with Mrs. Swan. While he had maintained patient doctor confidentiality, the women in this small town had no such code in their whisperings. He was amazed at how much his wife had learned about his patient on the few trips she had made into town, apparently gossip was much more rabid in small towns than in the big city- it was much juicier when everyone knew each other he supposed. He briefly wondered what the gossip was about him and his family in this small town, especially since he knew of a few Quileutes that worked at the mill, the small towns' primary employment source. Carlisle didn't bother with the mill. He had heard talk of them having their own doctor on staff, something practically unheard of especially during these lean times, and he had no interest in gaining that much attention. Anonymity was his family's greatest ally, and taking care of the occasional pregnant woman or the elderly that the mill's doctor had written off as not being worth his time and effort suited him just fine. The mill doctor was happy that someone else was taking care of them so he wouldn't be bothered or judged for refusing them, leaving him to his crush injuries and amputations when the men got careless around the huge logs or saw blades.

Carlisle only met him once, before he had met and agreed to care for Clarisse Swan. The doctor had told Carlisle to not get his hopes up "that one is not meant for having children" is how he had put it. His only sign of any compassion was for her husband "It's a real shame too, her husband is a good worker and takes time off every time his wife buries another one." It was that callous remark that made Carlisle ask the man for a list of patients that he no longer wanted to treat. He promptly listed off the names of half a dozen women and four elderly patients. By the time Carlisle had gotten the information on where he could find his new patients, one of them had died and all he could do was pronounce the old man's time of death and complete the death certificate as his body was removed from his home. After following the ambulance, such as it was, to the church for the funeral Carlisle took a few moments to examine his would be patient and found a badly infected wound. Even in death it was still foul from the infection that undoubtedly killed the man. Carlisle was disgusted by this; it was something that could have been avoided with the most basic level of care. He decided that he would call on the remaining names the next day to ensure there was no one else suffering from the mill doctors' blatant disregard. Carlisle thought about it being malpractice, but that would have meant the other doctor had at least attempted to provide care or treatment – something he obviously had not done.

Carlisle also second guessed his decisions to treat the pregnant women in town. While he had grown adept at explaining his cold hands to those he had treated in the past, he found them to be a bit harder to convince that it was due to their own body temperature being raised by a fever or the like. Delivery was easy enough; they were usually in so much pain that they didn't notice his cold hands and the new fathers were too excited by their newest son or daughter to pay him much mind either. But Forks was different, his family truly liked living here. He was starting to wonder if playing such a meaningful role in such a small town was a good idea. It would mean a great deal of time would have to pass before they would be able to return here, at least until the current generation was either dead or so old as to render their memories as senile ranting. He wasn't concerned about photographs, cameras were a luxury item and not something any of his current patients would have access to. In Chicago the influenza was so bad that no one had time to even think about staff photographs much less try to take any. Carlisle stopped in front of the small home and looked at the lights shining through the front windows. He could hear them talking about him inside, wondering if he was just running late or if he'd forgotten about them.

"_No, Doctor Cullen hasn't stopped by yet; I'm almost beginning to think that he's forgotten about us this evening."_ He heard his patient say. He stood there a moment longer as he heard them talk about her friends pregnancy, he wasn't sure if it would be a good idea to commit to her care as well, especially if they had to move on. He would think of something that wouldn't raise any suspicion he thought as he knocked on the door.

* * *

"Esme, do you know where Carlisle and Jasper are?" Edward was slightly agitated but she didn't know about what.

"What's wrong Edward? Carlisle had to go into town to check on a patient and I haven't seen Alice and Jasper, perhaps they went out for some privacy. They aren't accustomed to being around so many people you know."

Edward looked at Esme, she did remind him of his mother, as vague as those memories had become. Sometimes he wished he had been able to hang on to more of them, without the fog that clouded them. Carlisle had told him it was normal for human memories to fade as they progressed in this life, but if he tried hard enough, he would still be able to hold on to the ones he cherished the most. He could hear the thoughts running through her mind, the concern over a woman about to have a baby, the trip to Denali, a letter from the sisters, the wolves distracting Carlisle from his work, and concern for him. Concern about what could possibly have Edward upset. He smiled his crooked smile at her before he said anything.

"Esme, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you. It's just that it's been weeks since we've seen the wolves and it feels like we still don't know anything more about them. Carlisle said he wanted to go look for them again before they leave for Denali and Jasper has run off. I'm just frustrated. I want answers just as much as Carlisle does. I've never heard the thoughts of an animal before, and I can't hear any now - I've tried. I feel like a fool, but I've tried to hear the thoughts of a rabbit, several deer and a raccoon."

Esme couldn't help herself as she chuckled at Edwards' confession. "Did you really try to listen to a raccoon?" She laughed again as he glowered at her.

"I'm desperate for answers Esme. What else do you think I should do, where should I look for them?"

"Perhaps you can take both of our minds off of our troubles and play something for me? It's been a while since I've heard you play anything."

Edward smiled once more, though to whom he wasn't sure. Esme was right, it had been a while since he had touched the large piano and it often helped give him a new perspective on things, it helped him focus. He escorted her to the music room, she had been adamant about building one here, and he was glad for it. He sat down and placed his fingers lovingly on the keys and began to play for both of them. To say he was an accomplished pianist would be an understatement; he composed as beautifully as he could play. As he sat there with Esme watching him with the pride of a mother watching her child excel at something he decided that he would play something for her, and his memories. Edward began to compose as he played a beautiful lullaby. When he had finished he looked at Esme and knew that if their kind were capable of tears he would have seen them streaming down her cheeks.

"Oh Edward, that was so beautiful. What was it, I didn't recognize the piece?" she gushed.

"It's your lullaby Esme." It was all he could think to say. He didn't have a formal name for it. He just knew it was what he felt in his heart for the woman who now fulfilled the role of being his mother. She was almost as old as he was, not in the measure of human years, but Carlisle had changed her shortly after he had changed Edward. In a sense he was her elder, but he didn't think of their relationship in that way. Carlisle had changed Esme to be his own companion, knowing her heartbreak of having lost her own son as a baby; he also thought she could fulfill the role of being a mother figure for Edward in their new existence. Unlike what had happened when he had changed Rosalie, Carlisle had been right about Esme and her abilities to fulfill a maternal role in their family. Esme added more than just a soft touch, she added balance that none of the others seemed to be capable of without her presence. Edward had to admire Carlisle, he really had done an amazing job hand picking his family, as it were, plucking them from the grips of death.

While there were times that he had resented Carlisle for changing him, he also understood that Carlisle had given him an opportunity that not many were ever offered. He had resented Carlisle restricting their natural diet, to keep him from hunting humans. As he sat at the piano he reflected back on the time he had ventured out on his own while Carlisle was busy watching Esme go through the change. He stood in alley ways watching people go by him all but invisible to the humans. As he watched them, the venom pooled in his mouth and the natural thirst for their blood burned in his throat. His thirst had never burned like that while he was hunting animals with Carlisle; it stirred something almost animalistic deep inside of him that he didn't know was there. He remembered watching the families walk past him with their small children, the thought of taking the lives of one of them repulsed Edward, even now as he looked back.

It was then that he decided he would target the dregs of society; he would hunt the worst of the humans who sought to prey on the weaker of their kind. He took to the theaters where he could search the thoughts of a large group of humans at a time, seeking the depraved thoughts that would alleviate his conscious of taking a human life. He hunted the most vile of the human world that was unfortunate enough to cross paths with him – murderers, rapists, molesters, anyone with ill intent toward an unsuspecting woman or child, anyone that was perceived by those criminals to be easy prey. They didn't realize that Edward would be lying in wait, watching them, and waiting to protect their intended victims from them while they in turn became his. After a couple of months of this Edward became despondent, the red in his eyes were a reflection of not only his diet, but of the monster he felt that he was becoming. He saw something looking back at him in the mirror that he not only didn't recognize but repulsed him as much as it scared him. He swallowed his pride and returned to Carlisle anticipating the worst, but what he found was Esme standing next to Carlisle with open arms welcoming him home. That first embrace had caught Edward off guard, it made him feel awkward, but it also gave him something that he couldn't quite put into words. The feeling of it was like a vague memory, one so weak that it could easily be discounted as déjà-vu or something similar. He was prepared for being reprimanded at the least, cast out at worst, but welcomed home as if by his mother and forgiven of his recklessness as any child would be once they were known to be safe.

"Edward?" Esme was accustomed to him being among the quietest of the family, but sitting next to him as he just stared at the keys of the piano made her concerned. It was almost as if he had forgotten that somewhere else was there with him. "Edward, what is it?"

"I'm sorry, I was just thinking. Do you remember the first time you hugged me?"

"It was shortly after I had changed, you had left to go out on your own for a while and when Carlisle said you were coming back, it just felt like the most appropriate way for me to welcome you back. I didn't know what to say to you, but I wanted to show you that I was happy to see you, to be honest, I think it was an almost automatic response to your homecoming that night."

"I was just thinking about that. About how worried I was about coming back after what I had done, that Carlisle wouldn't want me anymore. But you just smiled at me and gave me that hug. I think that is the first time that I felt like you reminded me of my human mother, of how she had loved me. It was the first time that we felt like a family to me."

Esme smiled at him before hugging him as she had that first time. She understood that Edward was struggling with the addition of Alice and Jasper to their family. Especially Jasper, Alice and Edward had taken to communicating almost without speaking – they had become fast friends, but Jasper would take more time.

"Edward, perhaps you and Jasper should sit down and play some chess this evening. I think it would be beneficial for both of you – to get to know one another more, or better. I think it would help you sort through what you're feeling and give you a better perspective on who Jasper is and why he is the way he is."

Edward thought briefly before agreeing to her suggestion. "Perhaps you're right; I think it may be of some help to me. Thanks for listening Esme." Edward replayed both her words and her thoughts in his mind as he got up from the piano bench. He smiled and hugged her briefly before walking out of the room in search of Jasper; he had hoped Alice could see him looking for them.

* * *

**A/N Just in case any of you were wondering: **

**Charles & Clarisse Swan = Charlie Swan's grandparents, Bella's great-grandparents.**

**Mrs. Newton = Mike Newton's great grandmother**

**I plan on finishing this story up within the next few weeks, but I am struggling with how the wolves and Cullens are going to cross paths, not to mention a couple of pregnant women that need to have their babies. Thanks for reading, but some feedback would be appreciated -tell me what you like, or more importantly what you don't like about it so far so I can make it better. Thanks! **


	18. Routine check-up

"Doctor Cullen, please come in. We were starting to get worried!" Charles greeted Carlisle as he welcomed into the modest home. "I hope you don't mind, but my wife told one of her friends all about you and she wanted to meet you. She's in the living room with Clarisse."

"I'm sorry I'm late – it is not how I like to do things, I can assure you. Now what's this about one of her friends wanting to meet me?" Carlisle was cringing on the inside, being prompt was one of the things he had prided himself on for centuries – he couldn't think of the last time he had been late for anything. "Good evening ladies, please forgive me for my tardiness."

"Oh Doctor, would you please stop. If anything I've kept you waiting a lot more than 10 or 15 minutes, and on more than one occasion I might add!" Clarisse could not hold a grudge against the man that had seen her this far through what she considered to be her most successful pregnancy. "This is my best friend in the whole world, Nora. I've been telling her what a wonderful doctor you are and what excellent care you've been showing me."

"I'm so pleased to finally meet you Dr. Cullen. Clarisse has been telling me so much about you, not to mention what I've heard around town. I was hoping that I could convince you to take me on as your patient?" Nora asked as she covered her slightly swollen belly with her hands.

"First things first, Nora is it?"

"Yes doctor."

"Let me check on Clarisse and her baby and then we can talk."

"Come on Clarisse, you can help me figure out which of the leftovers are safe enough for us to still eat for dinner tonight'" Charles said leading Nora out of the living room so Carlisle could examine his wife.

"Now Clarisse, how are you feeling? Have you been resting as I instructed and avoiding the stairs as much as possible?"

"I'm feeling a bit more tired this week and I have been all but permanently stuck on this sofa. Charles won't allow me to go up or down the stairs unassisted, and by unassisted I mean him." Clarisse half smiled, her exhaustion was visible in her face and her voice.

"You do sound a bit tired. Are you sure you haven't been overdoing it? Too many visitors or anything like that? If need be I'll restrict your visitors down to just your friend Nora and Mrs. Newton is it?"

"Oh please don't Dr. Cullen, not Mrs. Newton! I promise to get more rest, it's just getting harder for me to get and stay comfortable is all. I'm afraid I haven't been sleeping all that well and it's catching up with me."

"Well now, that is understandable. You're in your third trimester now and it's to be expected that as the baby continues to put on weight your comfort level will drop. Perhaps you should try sleeping on your side with some pillows to help alleviate some of the pressure you're feeling. Now, let me take a look and see how things are progressing, alright?"

"Okay, I'll try sleeping on my side if that's what you suggest; I thought I had to sleep on my back at this point though." Clarisse thought back to what the mill doctor had told her, to lay as flat as possible as it would be best for the baby. Then she thought about all of the other things that man had told her that Dr. Cullen had told her to do differently this time. This time, while she was tired of being stuck on the couch all day not being allowed to do anything¸ Clarisse did feel much better than she had in her previous pregnancies and had no reason to doubt his council.

"Clarisse, where would you get an idea like that, wait, let me guess," Carlisle recognized the lack of knowledge regarding the care of a pregnant woman from the good doctor down at the mill.

She laughed briefly and gave him a weak smile before telling him to commence with her examination. Just as he finished her check-up Charles and Nora came back in from the kitchen where Carlisle could smell the food heating in the oven.

"Well Clarisse, things are progressing right on schedule. I'm very pleased with how well you are coming along. I know it must be difficult for you, but the bed rest seems to be paying off. I want you to get as must rest as you can – nap during the day if that's what it takes, but the next time I see you I don't want you looking so exhausted, it's not good for you or the baby. Sleep on your side like we discussed, it will help you be more comfortable and it won't harm the baby. The sleep will be good for both of you, and once that little one arrives you won't be getting much sleep so get it now, okay?"

"Yes doctor."

"How much longer does she have left Dr. Cullen?"

"A little less than nine weeks judging by her size and how the baby is situated, it doesn't appear to have turned yet and she hasn't started to dilate. Everything looks very good, just as long as she keeps to the bed rest, and if she gets too tired, I want you to keep the number of visitors she has down."

"Yes sir. Is there anything else I should do to keep her comfortable?" Charles was relieved to hear the words coming from the doctor that everything was progressing as it should. He also felt better about keeping her confined to the couch day in and day out, he'd thought the doctor was crazy when he had first told them about it. This was how far she had gotten with her second pregnancy when she had taken that terrible fall down the stairs, and from here on out would be unfamiliar territory for both of them. Fear of the unknown was actually welcomed at this point, it meant that they were about to get the family that they so desperately wanted and had suffered so much for.

"Just give her some extra pillows or blankets to help support her belly while she's on her side. It will help take some of the pressure off of her back and hopefully give her some much needed sleep. Now, I have to let you both know that I am going to be out of town for a short while. I don't want you to worry about anything, as long as you follow my instructions you'll be just fine until I return."

"What? You can't, you just can't leave – not now, not when I'm finally so close to, to…"Clarisse was instantly hysterical.

"What if something happens? You know that quack down at the mill will kill them both with his incompetence!" Charles was practically talking over his wife but the panic was evident in his voice as much as it was in hers.

Carlisle had been expecting the outburst; he knew this couple was as terrified as they were thrilled by the pregnancy and he understood that he would be leaving them without competent medical care. "If you follow my directions everything should be just fine, try not to worry so much. I don't plan on being gone very long, as a matter of fact; I'll be gone and back before your next scheduled check-up. I'll be stopping by to check on you every two weeks for the next month, and then as you get closer to the delivery we'll see each other every week so I can closely monitor you and the baby."

Charles and Clarisse looked at one another as if they were silently debating this news before giving Carlisle their answer. Nora just stood in the corner of the room letting all of this sink in, realizing that this was not the best time for her to impose upon her friends or the doctor, but also fearful of losing her best opportunity of convincing the lovely Dr. Cullen to take her on as his newest patient. She also knew she would have to wait for one of her friends to speak first before she would make her attempt to keep him here, for both of their sakes.

"Well," began Charles, "I don't think we can stop you from your travels now can we."

"No, I'm afraid not," Carlisle chuckled, he knew there was no threat from the Swans.

"As long as you are certain my wife and unborn child will be safe until your return, I guess we'll just have to be okay with this."

"Just follow my orders and you'll be just fine Clarisse," Carlisle told her trying to give his stern look that just resulted in her giggling.

"Yes Dr. Cullen, I will follow your orders to the letter. How soon will you be leaving?"

"Um, excuse me, if I may…."Nora trailed off seeing the look Clarisse had just given her.

"Yes, Nora? I haven't forgotten about your request." Carlisle was relieved at her interruption; he did not want to give out any details of his pending travels if he could avoid them.

"I'm so sorry Clarisse, I didn't mean to interrupt, it's just that I thought if Dr. Cullen here had two of us to look at after he might be more inclined to maybe delay his trip if that were possible?"

"I'm afraid not, it's a pressing family matter that I must attend to. Now, I will want to meet with both you and your husband to discuss your case prior to agreeing to anything. You do understand I hope."


	19. At The Mill

At the mill…..

"Hey Clearwater – go give Swan a hand outside!" the foreman yelled over the noise inside the mill. Joe Clearwater didn't mind the foreman on days like this, if anything, he was looking forward to working with Charles. Not to mention it would give the two of them a chance to talk; the Chief wanted to know more about the cold one posing as a doctor to the townspeople. Joe didn't like spying on his friend, maybe lying was a better description than spying, but he didn't like it much it either way. He raised his hand back to the foreman to show that he had been heard as he walked out of the mill in search of his friend. Yes, Charles Swan was one man he counted as a friend; he had courage and believed in standing up for what was right. Joe remembered the first time the foreman had tried to hit one of the Quileute's that had gone to work at the mill, it wasn't pretty and if it hadn't been for 'Mr. Swan' sticking his neck out for them without even knowing them, Joe was pretty sure someone would have died that day and no one from the reservation would be working at the mill.

Joe understood why Chief Black didn't like the tribes' people taking work off of the reservation; it wasn't in line with their ways. But he also knew that the Chief understood it was a financial necessity for them to be able to provide for their families, to survive and times were tough all over, no one could afford to refuse work with a steady paycheck. After they had stumbled across the cold ones feeding on their lands last year and made a treaty with them, the Chief was overly cautious about anyone leaving their lands. The stories had told of the danger of the cold ones and how they could easily wipe out the small tribe if the spirit warriors weren't able to destroy them. As the people started to interact with the pale faces in the small town that had started to grow as a result of the mill, the Chief began to worry about what the cold ones could do to them as well. When Joe had told Ephraim, as his friend, not his Chief, that he was going to look for work at the mill, Ephraim had told him he understood. The next words that were spoken did not come from his friend, but from his Chief – steer them away from our lands, protect our people as best that you can and find out what you can about the cold ones.

Joe had taken those words to heart, to protect their people and to keep an ear out for any word on the cold ones. Joe had not expected to find the likes of Charles Swan at the mill. Unlike many of the other townspeople, Charles did not shun the men that came off the reservation looking to provide for their families, he greeted them the same as he did everyone else. Then, after the Uley's had their run in with the foreman, and Charles was the one to smooth things over with his calm demeanor, Joe had decided that he liked this pale face. He would befriend him if he could, not for what the Chief wanted, but for a true friendship with a man that could see him as an equal. He finally saw Charles over by where the huge logs were off loaded from the logging trucks.

"Charles, the foreman said you needed a hand out here."

"Hey Joe, yeah we've got more trees coming in than what they're pushing through the saws. If we don't get this mess organized someone's liable to get hurt if they roll."

"Okay, let's get this thing done."

The men worked with several others getting the piles of logs stacked within the racks to prevent them from rolling. When the whistle for lunch blew, Joe decided it was time for him to catch up with his new friend. Even though they had only known each other for a few months, they had a good friendship with easy conversation. It didn't hurt matters that both of them had wives putting demands on their time at home to commiserate over. Joe's son, Harry, was only a few years old, but still young enough that Charles enjoyed the tales of the young boys' antics.

"Hey Charles, do you want to catch up over lunch? Harry caught his first fish last week, it was really something!"

"Sure Joe. Clarisse has me worried beyond words so something lighthearted would probably do me some good right about now."

"I thought she was doing better this time around. Thought that new doctor of hers was taking really good care of her and all of that."

"Oh he is, Dr. Cullen has been great. It's just that he dropped a shocker on us last night when he came by for her checkup is all."

"Oh? What happened, anything you want to talk about?" Joe felt a twinge of guilt in asking, knowing that if he learned anything of importance that he would have to take it to Ephraim.

"It's not that big of a deal I guess, it just caught us off guard. Dr. Cullen has to go out of town for a short trip is all. Clarisse panicked when he told us, but he said everything is going well. He's keeping her on bed rest and told her to get as much sleep as she can because once the baby gets here she won't be getting hardly any."

Joe was surprised at this news, he would have to tell Ephraim, but his friendship won out over a mission set forth by his Chief.

"Isn't she getting close to her delivery date? I thought you said this doctor was a miracle worker of sorts. I'm sorry Charles, I just find it kind of odd that he would just go on a trip…"

"That's what we thought too, but he said he'd be back before her next appointment in two weeks, something about family business that he needs to take care of. But he swears he'll be back and as long as she follows his instructions both her and the baby will be fine. Enough about my wife's doctor, tell me about this fish that Harry caught."

Joe and Charles spent the rest of their lunch talking about fishing and how his son Harry had managed to snag a trout almost as big as he was. Joe was relieved to have the lighter conversation with Charles, it didn't feel like he was betraying anyone. The whistle blew again signaling the end of the lunch break and the men turned back to their work for the remainder of the day.

At the end of the day, the Uley's and Clearwater's all piled into their pick-up truck and headed back to the reservation. Joe was not looking forward to speaking with the Chief, but knew he was obligated to tell him what he had learned about the cold ones possibly leaving. He also knew that he stood a very good chance of being asked to phase into his wolf form so they could run the perimeter of their lands and look for the cold ones and make sure the rules had not been broken. He parked the truck in front of his home as everyone jumped out and headed home, he looked at his front door debating whether or not he should go straight over to Ephraim's house or let his wife know that he was most likely going to miss supper. He opted for the least painful of his choices; he trudged over to his front door and prepared to tell his wife that he would be over at the Black's house for a few hours and to not wait up for him. What he found instead was an empty house with a short note left for him on the kitchen table. His wife had gone to help one of the women who was in labor and the children had gone with her, there was a sandwich left for him in the ice box. Joe grabbed the sandwich and ate it as he walked to Ephraim's house. Ordinarily¸ he enjoyed talking with Ephraim, but since the cold ones had returned to the area, it was more formal, like the fun was gone from his friend leaving only business behind.

"Ephraim, are you here?" Joe called as he knocked on the door as he opened it.

"Is that you Joe? What is it? Have you heard something?"

"Yes, Dr. Cullen is caring for the Swan woman while she is with child."

"Yes, yes, you've told me this. Has something happened? Have they violated the treaty?"

"No, Ephraim. They have not violated the treaty, but the doctor has told them that he has to go out of town for a family trip of some sort."

"What? Are they all leaving, or just the one? How soon?" Ephraim demanded answers.

"I'm not sure, within the next two weeks, but he says he's coming back." Joe knew this would only raise more questions that he didn't have the answers to, and he was starting to wish they could just phase so he could show Ephraim everything all at once without so many questions.

"Why don't we go for a run to check on things and you can fill me in on the rest." Ephraim said knowing that Joe would not refuse him.

"Sure thing, which way do you want to go first Chief?"

"Why don't we just follow our noses tonight?"

The two phased into their wolf forms that allowed them to run quickly and almost silently through the forest. They checked their boundaries to ensure no one had crossed them without their knowledge. As they ran, they shared their thoughts with one another. Joe almost preferred it this way, the bond between them that allowed them to hear the others thoughts without having words get in the way made it much easier to communicate, especially for those things that Joe was less comfortable with than Ephraim thought he should be.


	20. In The Woods

"Jasper, Alice? Are you out here?" Edward's patience was wearing thin. He knew that everyone needed some privacy from time to time, but these two were getting ridiculous with running off into the woods to fool around with one another. It made him think of Emmet and Rosalie and how Esme had sent them off to live on their own for a few years to get it out of their systems as she had put it. At least these two were considerate enough of the rest of the family to take it out of ear shot. It was then that he picked up on Alice's thoughts just before he heard her faint giggle telling Jasper to hurry up.

"Should I give you two another moment to make yourselves presentable?"

"Edward, you should know by now that I am always presentable," Alice said as she came out of the tree line a few yards up ahead of him.

"What's going on Edward? Has something happened?" Jasper picked up on how tense Edward was but didn't understand what was behind it.

"No, nothing's happened. I just needed to talk to you about the wolves while Carlisle is in town checking on his patients."

"Well, while you two discuss wild animals, I am going to head back to the house and start packing for our little trip." Alice gave Jasper a quick kiss before running off towards the house.

Jasper watched his mate run off towards their home before turning his full attention to Edward. "All right Edward, what's really going on?"

"I think we should go run the border while Carlisle is in town. I don't think he would agree to it if he were here, but I don't think we're going to find those wolves anywhere else."

"I have to agree with you. I think the only place where we are going to find them is along the border. We just have to make sure we don't cross it accidently."

"Agreed," Edward nodded and they took off running towards the boundary line and the river.

As the two vampires ran they talked about their different theories about the wolves. They had never seen anything like them in their existence, and it was unusual for an ordinary animal to be able to avoid them while they were actively searching for them. It wasn't the same as hunting for food, but they used many of the same tactics. But the biggest challenge for them this time is that they had no way of actually tracking the scent directly. They couldn't pick it up on their side of the treaty boundary, but as they ran, both vampires thought they had picked up on the scent they were searching for.

"Esme – I'm home," Carlisle called knowing full well that she knew he was home without the announcement. He wanted to talk to his wife about one of his patients, something he didn't ordinarily do but knew she would be excited about, especially when she found out which one it was.

"In the kitchen dear," Esme answered him as she and Rosalie finished arranging some flowers they had gathered earlier in the day.

"Thanks Rose, would you be so kind as to put them on the dining room table for me?"

"Certainly Esme. Have a good visit with the humans Carlisle?" Rosalie asked in greeting as she left the two of them alone in the kitchen.

"Esme, do you think it would be possible for me to impose upon you to check on one of my patients while I'm up in Denali?"

"What? Carlisle! What are you saying? Which one? Is it the one who's pregnant?"

Carlisle chuckled softly, "I thought you might be a tad bit interested."

"Carlisle, are you going to tell me, or are you going to tease me about this?"

"I want you to check in on Mrs. Swan for me. She's in her last trimester and is having a bit of a hard time with the bed rest I've ordered for her."

"Oh Carlisle! Of course I'll check in on her. How often do you want me to stop by? Did you tell her when I'd be coming by? What do you want me to check for when I go to visit with her? Should I bring anything for her?"

"Slow down, slow down. I only want you to stop in and check on her once, any more than that and she's liable to panic and I'm afraid she's under enough stress as it is. Her best friend Nora has been sitting with her while her husband is at work over to the mill, but she's pregnant as well."

"Do I get to meet with both of them? Are you taking Nora on as a patient too?"

"Yes, I suppose you will get to meet Nora, but be careful. Nora has asked that I take her on as a patient, but I've managed to put her off until after the trip to Denali. I told her that I would need to meet with her husband and her together before I would agree to treat her. Apparently they've been trying for quite some time to start a family and were about to give up hope and Mrs. Swan has been, gushing, I believe is the term she used, about how much happier she is with my care than the mill doctor."

"Carlisle, I don't understand, why would you put her off? Are you planning on not coming back from Denali, has something else happened?"

"No, it's not that. I have every intention of only being gone for about a week to Denali to see what the sisters know, I think that Elezar may be there with Carmen and I'm hoping he may be able to shed some light on these wolves that have Jasper and Edward so worked up."

"Are we back to the wolves, or are you going to finish telling me about Mrs. Swan?"

"I promise to tell you everything you need to know about Mrs. Swan before I leave, alright? Now, where are Edward and Jasper at? I need to talk to them so we can finish putting are plans together before we leave for Denali."

"I haven't seen Edward for a few hours now. The last I saw of him, he was going to look for Jasper and Alice."

As if on cue, they saw Alice come walking across the lawn with an arm full of wildflowers. She looked as though she was thoroughly content until she came to an abrupt halt dropping the flowers at her feet. They watched as her smile faded into a blank stare and she stood frozen in the yard for a few moments. Carlisle and Esme had learned to recognize when she was having one of her visions and sped out of the kitchen and to her side.

"Alice, tell us what do you see?" Carlisle asked as he had heard Jasper do over the past several months when she had her visions.

"Snow, I see lots of snow," Alice responded as if she were in an unreachable trance. "Mountains and snow; I see all of us living in a house surrounded by snow with huge mountains. There are others like us, three women with blonde hair telling us we can stay….."

Carlisle and Esme looked at one another confused by what Alice had just told them. If what she saw was correct, something was going to happen that would have the Cullen family moving to Alaska. The question was what was it, and how long did they have.

"Alice, do you have any idea of when?" Esme wasn't ready to leave this place, she was finally going to get to meet one of Carlisle's patients, and this was their home.

"Alice, where is Jasper?" Carlisle needed to know where his family was – all of them.

"He's with Edward. They went out looking for the wolves. They wanted to see if they could figure out any more about them before we go to Denali. Edward said something about wanting to know what he should be listening for before you go."

"Here Alice, let me help you with those," Esme said as they both bent over to pick up the flowers Alice had dropped.

"I'm going to go see if I can catch up with Edward and Jasper ladies."

"Carlisle, please don't go out there alone, why don't you take Emmet with you? Just to be on the safe side, and to make me feel better, please." Esme didn't like the thought of her mate being out in the woods with a potential threat so close by that they knew so little about.

"Did somebody say my name?" Emmet asked as he came down the steps from the house.

"Emmet, how do you feel about going for a little run with me?" Carlisle asked.

"Sure thing Carlisle, but are we just going for a run or are we looking for something?"

"Actually, were looking for Edward and Jasper. Alice said they've gone off looking for the wolves by themselves."

"Well we can't have that, now can we. I'm ready whenever you are."

With that, Emmet and Carlisle took off across the river in search of Edward and Jasper. As they ran Carlisle and Emmet talked about the wolves and how it was odd that they had been unable to even pick up their scent, much less not to have seen them since that first time. It was almost as if the wolves knew they were looking for them and were deliberately hiding. They were accustomed to having the prey they hunted run from them, but most animals didn't take to hiding, they took to running when a vampire came looking for them.

Just as Edward and Jasper were about to give up their search for the wolves, Jasper picked up a strange scent.

"Edward – do you smell that?"

"Yes, it, it smells awful, like a wet dog or something. What is that?"

Edward and Jasper scanned the surrounding woods looking for the source of the unfamiliar scent. Just as they were about to give up looking for it, they both caught the movement across the river from them. Two large wolves were running in the forest on the other side of the treaty line.

"So that's why we haven't been able to pick up their trail," Jasper said half to himself.

"What's why you haven't been able to pick up a trail?" Emmet asked as he and Carlisle caught up with them.

"Carlisle, Emmet – look over across the river," Jasper said softly as he pointed out the wolves.

They had stopped running and were now facing the group of vampires. They heard a low growl drift across the river to them before the two wolves turned in what appeared to be a synchronized motion and took off deeper into the forest and further into the reservation.

Emmet, Carlisle, Edward and Jasper stood there for a moment looking after them. They watched as the wolves ran deeper into the forest, not out of fear, but what struck them as some sort of act of defiance.

"Jasper, did you feel anything?"

"I'm not sure, I thought I felt a brief flicker of anger when one of them growled at us, but I can't be certain. Did you get anything?"

"I thought I heard 'too many' but that doesn't make any sense, does it?" Edward and Jasper were truly perplexed at what had just transpired.

"Are you ready to head back to the house so we can discuss this without running the risk of being overheard?"

"Yes Carlisle, I think you're right – I'm not sure if it's smart to discuss this here." Jasper wasn't sure about what had just transpired, but he did know he didn't trust their current surroundings, it was too easy to be overheard by a potential enemy.


	21. Departure Prep

"Ephraim, did you see them? They were looking right at us. Do you think they know, do you think they realize what we are? That the wolves are us?" Joe Clearwater wasn't a man that was easily excited. They had been running for over an hour before they had caught wind of the cold ones across the river. They had wanted to see what they were up to and thought they were far enough away to go unnoticed but things had not worked out that way.

"Yes, I saw them, and I saw them looking at us. I think that they are curious about the mighty wolves, but I do not think they know it was us. Our secret is still our own, they do not know about the spirit warriors or how we can transform into the wolf. I do think that they are looking for us though. But I do not think they know how to find us and they did not cross over the boundaries, so we will continue to leave them be as long as they continue to honor the treaty. But we will continue to watch them as close as we can, and that includes whatever you can learn of them while you are at the mill."

"I understand Ephraim. Do you think it might be possible to invite some of our friends from the mill to come onto the reservation for a bonfire?" Joe was hoping that he could get out of the business of spying on his friends by letting the chief observe them directly for himself. He could ask them what he wanted to know without Joe feeling like he was betraying his friends or his tribe.

As the four of them entered the house they were talking excitedly amongst themselves, oblivious to their surroundings. After they had continued on, Esme, Alice and Rosalie had grown tired of being ignored and so blatantly left out of the conversation.

"Eh-hem" Rosalie cleared her throat and leveled a hard stare at her mate.

"Oh, hey Rosie," Emmet answered her but immediately turned back to the conversation the men were having.

"Carlisle, I am sure of it, I felt a wave of hatred at the same time we heard that growl." Jasper was certain that the feeling he had picked up on while they were watching the wolves had been anger, anger directed at them.

"Are you absolutely certain Jasper, its imperative that you are absolutely certain about this." Carlisle was still trying to wrap his brain around the possibility that Jasper had picked up on a feeling that had originated from an animal and not a human or vampire.

"Carlisle, Jasper is right. I picked up on a thought as if there was someone standing across the river from us – it was crystal clear, I have no doubt in my mind about it either. 'Too many' and it wasn't coming from you, Emmet or Jasper. It had to be them." Edward understood what Jasper was feeling and thinking, they were both certain about what their gifts were showing them but the fact that Carlisle seemed to be doubting them was getting very frustrating.

"Carlisle, I have to agree with them" Emmet offered up in support. "Edward can tell whose thoughts are whose, he's told us before that our thoughts sound like our voices to him. I don't know how Jasper's feeling thing works, but I bet he can tell who is feeling what without getting them mixed up too."

"What on earth are you boys going on about like this?" Esme had had about enough of them failing to show proper manners by at least acknowledging their presence.

"Sorry dear," Carlisle offered up, "we just saw those two large wolves again."

"Where were they?" Esme was concerned, she knew that they wanted to find them to learn about them, but something about the wolves also made her uneasy. She was hoping that they weren't too close to the house.

"By the river, down by the bluff" Alice offered almost as if she were having another one of her visions. Jasper stepped quickly to her side and took her hand in his before she continued on, "You kind of flickered out of sight from me when you were there. It was almost like it was a hiccup of sorts, but you and Edward came right back as soon as Emmet and Carlisle reached you."

Carlisle looked around at his family as he contemplated his next words. "I think the time for us to make our trip north has come. Jasper, Alice, I want the two of you to be ready to leave within the next day or so. There are a few preparations I need to make in town for my patients before I can leave."

"Are you taking anyone else with you Carlisle?" Edward knew that he didn't want to go and had picked out of Carlisle's thoughts that he was concerned about splitting the family up too much with the wolves having been seen again.

"No. I think it would be best for you and Emmet to stay here with Esme and Rosalie, just in case these wolves turn out to be some sort of threat. I don't want to leave anyone vulnerable if they do turn out to be something other than a couple of overgrown wolves."

"But what about you guys?" Emmet was a bit disappointed at missing out on a trip to Denali, but he also understood what Carlisle was getting at.

"Between Alice's visions and Jaspers fighting skills, I think the three of us will manage just fine. Stay here and protect our home, and try not to wander too far from the house. When you go out hunting, I want you to head away from the reservation."

"Okay, but do you want us to see if we can find the wolves again?" Emmet wanted to see if they could find them again.

"No. I don't want you out looking for them while we're gone. I'm not entirely sure that they are just ordinary wolves, especially if Edward and Jasper can pick up thoughts and emotions from them." Carlisle knew that it was risky leaving Emmet behind, not because he would need him but because his enthusiasm could sometimes be difficult to contain.

"We won't go hunting for any wolves while you're gone Carlisle," Rosalie assured him. She didn't enjoy the prospect of her mate going out in search of something that could turn out to be a threat to them – she would use her own methods of keeping him occupied while they were gone if she needed to.

"Thank you Rose. Esme, when you go into town, I want you to take Edward with you. I just want you to check in on Mrs. Swan once, twice if she seems overly nervous, tired or stressed. Edward, don't go in with her, stay hidden outside where no one will be able to see you. I've told Mrs. Swan that I might send my wife over to check on her while I'm out of town, but that's it. Too many visitors aren't good for her and I honestly don't know how her husband or friends would react to you showing up with Esme."

"Yes Carlisle. How soon will you be leaving then?" Edward understood perfectly what was about to happen, but he wanted Carlisle to be the one to say it.

"The three of us will leave for Denali tomorrow afternoon if I can get a hold of my patients that I'm due to call on over the next couple of weeks. Most of them can have their appointments rescheduled without too much trouble, but Mrs. Swan is the most pressing of my cases. Avoid her friend Nora if it is at all possible; if she show's up while you're there just come up with an excuse as to why you have to leave. If Eleazar confirms my suspicions, we may need to consider leaving sooner than what we had originally anticipated and I don't want to have to disappoint her if it is at all possible."

"Carlisle," Esme was upset, "what do you mean we may have to consider leaving? We haven't been here for that long, just barely a year now."

"I know, but if these wolves are something else that I recall the brothers loathing, we won't be safe here. We need to be prepared to leave on short notice and I believe Nora is not a woman that is willing to graciously accept a no and continue on – she'll argue her point and she will draw attention – things we don't want."

"Carlisle, if I may, I think it might be wise for all of us to go out hunting tonight. Safety in numbers you know," Jasper was sure they wouldn't have a problem finding something to eat on their journey, but he was concerned that the others might have problems in their absence.

"I think that is an excellent idea Jasper."

As the Cullen's hunted that night, they made sure they went hunting in the opposite direction of the reservation. Everyone was on edge, but not necessarily for the same reasons. Edward and Esme had heard the words they dreaded most come from Carlisle's own lips, they might have to leave their first real home, and sooner than anyone would have ever anticipated. Jasper and Alice were excited about their pending trip; it would be new territory for the both of them. Jasper was looking forward to meeting some older vampires – the Cullen's were all relatively young with only Carlisle being older then he was. He was curious to learn more from the sisters that he had heard so much about not to mention Eleazar who had been so instrumental in recruiting the gifted one of their kind to play key roles in the Volturri Guard. Alice was revisiting her earlier vision of them living in a place with so much snow and wanted to see for herself first hand if Denali was the place.

Esme was contemplating the task Carlisle was entrusting to her, to look in on one of his pregnant patients. The other thought that she kept pushing from her mind was the one of them having to pack up and move again. She was particularly fond of this place, of this house, no, this home. Yes, this was their first true home and she felt that Alice and Jasper had brought them the missing piece to their family that they hadn't realized was missing. She knew Carlisle was more than capable of taking care of himself, but it would be the first time they had been apart since he had changed her and she wasn't looking forward to it; she would miss him terribly. Edward listened to all of their thoughts, except for Emmet and Rosalie who were both contemplating how long they would have to wait to ravage one another and how they would have more time to do so with half the family out of the house. Edward took notice of Esme's thought on how Alice and Jasper had completed their family, and he had to agree that the couple had brought a different aspect to the coven that was actually needed to help balance all of them out. The only other thought that drew Edward's focus was Carlisle's thinking that it may be the last time they all go out hunting together for quite some time.

"Carlisle, is there something else I should know?" Edward had slowed his pace enough to allow Carlisle to catch up with him.

"What are you referring to Edward?"

"Do you really think that we won't be able to do this together again for a long time?"

Carlisle came to a stop and looked at his son, if his heart still beat it would be heavy with what he was about to say.

"Yes, I think it may be. I am starting to suspect that those wolves are no ordinary animal, and if they are what I fear then it is not safe for us to stay here. But their actions don't fit with my suspicions; I need to talk to Eleazar and the sisters, to see if they have any more information before I say anything more to the others, and I would appreciate it if you would keep this just between us."

"Of course Carlisle, but if the wolves do turn out to be a threat as you suspect, how soon will it be before we leave for good and where will we go to next?"

"I don't know yet Edward. I have these same questions but I don't have the answers, not yet anyway. That is why this trip to Denali is so important; I'm hoping it will give me us the answers we need to be able to make an informed decision as to what we should do. If we can stay here safely for a while longer or if we'll need to relocate sooner than planned."

"Will we go to Denali from here, if it comes to that, or would we search for someplace new?"

"That is something that we will need to discuss as a family after we return. I won't make a decision like that without talking to everyone first."

"When will you return Carlisle? Everyone has been focused on when you would be leaving, but nothing has really been said about your return."

"I plan to return in less than a weeks' time, I have patients that I need to take care of, and I think it would raise too many questions if the new doctor were to suddenly vanish when he is supposed to be delivering a baby in less than a few months' time. We may be fairly new here, but the humans have still taken notice of us and when we leave here, they will notice that as well if I am not successful in dropping the number of patients I have."

"Carlisle, do you think it's wise to be delivering babies here? I have no doubt in your abilities to do so, it's just that it seems to draw a great deal of attention in a small town such as this, and this Swan woman sounds as though everyone is watching her pregnancy. Doesn't it go against our attempts at maintaining a certain degree of anonymity?"

"I understand your concerns Edward, but I have also taken an oath as a doctor and to leave some of these people to the mill doctor is as good as killing them by my own hand. I have no reason to doubt that the pregnancy will be successful and I can quickly fade into the background so if our departure does come we can do it without drawing too much attention."

"I hope so Carlisle, I really do like it here, and so does Esme and the others."

"I know son, now let's go hunt with the others before they start to wonder where we've gotten off to."


	22. Esme & Clarisse meet

Esme knocked timidly at the front door of the Swan residence. From what Carlisle had told her, an early morning visit might be best for her introductory calling. Her husband would leave early enough to head off to the mill, and her friend Nora would most likely still be at home dealing with her morning sickness which would give Esme just enough time to introduce herself and chat briefly to let Clarisse know that she would be back once more to make sure she was alright while Carlisle was out of town. It was very important that Esme get out of the house on the first visit without crossing paths with Nora. While Esme thought her mate was being overly cautious, she recalled her chance encounter with Nora at the store when they had been out shopping. She was definitely a talker, and not one accustomed to being told no and just accepting it. No, Nora was a persistent woman who was a fierce friend and willing to go out of her way for anyone she considered a true friend. If she was given the chance, she would try to use Esme to convince Carlisle to take her on as a patient – something the family needed to avoid if the Denali trip proved their growing concerns about the wolves as valid resulting in the Cullen family's sudden departure from the Olympic Peninsula as a whole for quite some time to come. The only comfort that Esme took in their having to leave Forks was knowing that they would be able to return to the area after a few decades had past and everyone they had encountered during this period of residency would most likely be long since dead, and the young human children would have long since forgotten any of them as a combination of senility and memories that were far too distant to be recalled while they would be busy doting on grandchildren or preparing for the approaching end of their natural lives.

Esme knocked once more before turning the door knob and poking her head through the door calling out to Clarisse, not wanting her to get up to answer the door but also not wanting to startle her.

"Mrs. Swan? It's Dr. Cullen's wife, Esme. He asked me to stop by while he was out of town to check on you. May I come in?"

A faint reply came from the living room, "Yes, yes, that's fine. Come in please."

Esme quickly looked over her shoulder to where Edward had left her to make sure he couldn't be seen, he was well hidden as they had planned, and closed the door quietly behind her.

"Mrs. Swan, Clarisse? May I call you Clarisse? My name is Esme Cullen, Carlisle asked me to stop by to see how you are doing."

Clarisse started to try to prop herself up into a sitting position when Esme stopped her.

"Please don't. Carlisle said that you are on strict bed rest. Please stay down, is there anything I can get for you? A cup of tea perhaps?"

"Thank you, some tea would be lovely. Please, call me Clarisse, Mrs. Swan sounds so formal."

"Certainly, Clarisse it is then. Now, tell me what cupboard I can find the tea in and if you take anything with your tea."

"The tea is in the white jar on the counter and the tea cups are in the cupboard just to the left of the sink. Or… at least that's where I kept them the last time I was allowed in my own kitchen," Clarisse smiled at her weakly. "There should be a covered sugar bowl with some cubes on the counter next to the tea jar and some milk in the ice box. Will you be joining me for the tea?"

"I'm afraid I can't stay too long this morning. I just wanted to check in on you and introduce myself and see when a good time for me to come by and visit with you would be." Esme thought it best to not get the woman's' hopes up for a prolonged visit and knew that Nora would be arriving before too long. Edward was supposed to be watching for the arrival of the other woman and give her a signal if she needed to get out of the house in a hurry. "Carlisle made me promise I wouldn't stay too long and tire you out."  
"Of course Mrs. Cullen."

"Please, call me Esme. Let me go get that tea for you." The tea kettle had just started to whistle on the stove and Esme took the opportunity to break off the topic of conversation.

Esme returned with the tea set on a small lap tray complete with the sugar cubes and the milk in a small creamer pitcher. She was beginning to understand why Carlisle had kept so much about his patients, especially this one, from her despite her badgering. While they were clouded and distant, Esme was beginning to feel overwhelmed by the memories Clarisse Swan was stirring up inside of her, about the loss of her own son that had ultimately led her to her current existence. She smiled warmly at Clarisse before setting the tray down on the table next to the sofa and helping her sit up so she could drink her tea.

"Thank you Esme. I can't tell you how nice it is to finally meet you. Dr. Cullen said that you were wonderful, but well trained husband doesn't say that about his wife?" Clarisse was trying to endear herself to this beautiful woman who radiated a type of warmth that she had never encountered before. She found herself desperately wanting Esme to stay and to be her friend and she had no idea why.

Esme smiled back at her, "Carlisle is truly a dear and I am just as lucky to have him. Carlisle said one of your friends usually comes to sit with you while your husband is at work."

"Yes, my best friend Nora usually sits with me. She should be here any minute now, although with her morning sickness she's been running a bit behind lately….."

"Alright then, just as long as you're certain she'll be here. I'm afraid I really must be getting along to get some errands done if I'm going to get back home in time to get my baking done before lunch. It was truly a pleasure meeting you Clarisse. I'll stop back by in a couple of days if that's alright with you?"

"I'd really like that Esme."

"Okay, would it be better if I came by in the afternoon next time, or around this time in the morning again?"

"Either would be fine with me, just so long as you promise that you are coming back to see me soon."

"I promise you Clarisse, I will be back to visit you at least once more while Carlisle is out of town." Esme knew she had to be almost out of town when she heard Edwards faint whistle signaling the approach of Nora.

"It's been a real pleasure meeting you this morning, now you stay put while I show myself out, alright?"

"The pleasure has been mine Esme, and don't you worry, I promise to follow the good doctor's orders to the 'T'."

Esme gave her one more quick smile before she headed out the front door. She looked around the street before spotting Nora walking slowly towards the Swan residence, the toll of her first pregnancy was starting to become evident, at least to Esme it was. She quickly ran to the tree line when she was certain no one would see her running and met up with Edward in the woods behind the house.

"How did it go?" Edward asked knowing that Esme was very distracted from her brief visit.

"I think it went well. I'll have to remember not to breathe too much around her when I go back; the smell is different when they're pregnant." Esme then turned toward the shopping center of the small town and began to walk at a humans pace.

"Esme, why are you heading into town?" Edward heard the turmoil in her thoughts, but nothing that gave him any indication as to why she was going into town instead of returning to their home.

"I told her I had errands to run and baking to do. I thought it would be best if I went and picked up some ingredients for the baking. I plan on bringing something to her next time. She sounded so drained Edward, like she had no joy left in her days. I have to do something to help lift her spirits; she just struck me as being so depressed."

It was then that Edward picked up on her thoughts, her memories of losing her own son. He didn't think another visit with this woman would be very good for Esme. He had never seen her so sullen, not even after Carlisle had first changed her when her human memories were still so clear to her. If this was the effect of being so close to humans was on Esme, it would break his heart to listen to her thoughts with all of the loss and suffering she was feeling. Edward decided that he would do what he could to keep her mind off of these things as best he could until Carlisle and the others returned from Denali.


	23. Arrival In Denali

They had run most of the way from Forks in silence; they all seemed to be lost in their own thoughts. Jasper was feeling overwhelmed by the amount of excitement coming from Alice, he wasn't accustomed to this much excitement coming off of her on a trip –she could see it before it happened and took much of the anticipation out of it for her. All he was getting off of Carlisle was a turmoil of anticipation, anxiety and remorse. Jasper wondered what Carlisle would be remorseful over when this journey had been his idea. As they continued to run Jasper kept focusing on Carlisle's emotions trying to narrow things down a bit more before he broke their silence.

"Carlisle, what are you upset about? I thought you wanted to make this trip, it was your idea after all."

"What? Oh, I'm sorry Jasper, I forgot about your gift." Carlisle had been caught off guard by Jaspers sudden question. "I wouldn't say that I'm upset exactly, more that I'm questioning my decision to leave the others behind."

"They'll be fine Carlisle, I've seen it." Alice chimed in. She had been watching the others since they had crossed over into Canada to make sure everyone was all right.

"I know Alice, I just worry about them. I'm not accustomed to leaving them behind when I travel, especially Esme. This is the first time I'll have traveled to Denali without her since she joined me." Carlisle broke off the conversation and picked up his running pace slightly giving both of them the indication that he had no interest in discussing it further.

Alice looked over at Jasper, "I think it's sweet. Would you miss me as much if we ever have to travel apart?"

"Probably even more so, although I can't think of anything that could make me want to leave you behind, unless it was for a shopping trip," Jasper winked at her before taking her hand and running after Carlisle to catch up with him.

"We're almost there," Carlisle told Alice and Jasper as they caught up with him. "I want to be sure the two of you are prepared for meeting the three sisters. We consider them family as you know, so you've heard us refer to them as our cousins. But Irina, Tanya and Kate are thousands of years old; they are the source of many human legends, mostly revolving around the succubus. Tanya is especially flirtatious, so be prepared Alice, and you too Jasper. If we've timed our little trip right, Carmen and Eleazar should be here as well and he is the one who I'm hoping to get the most information from."

"Why is that Carlisle, I mean why Eleazar, I thought we were coming to talk to the sisters?" Jasper was running this information over in his mind – he could care less about another woman, Alice was his true love so Tanya was of no concern to him, but Eleazar was a virtual mystery.

"Carlisle, I thought you said it would help both of us with our adjustment to our non-human diet to talk to the sisters, and to ask about the wolves?" Alice was checking her visions looking for some sort of clarification to what they were being told.

"I did, and I hope that talking to them will help you with what you should expect. But I want to talk to my old friend. I first met Eleazar when I was staying with the Volturi in Italy, and he spent many more years with them than I did and I'm hoping he learned something that I remember Caius talking about once."

As Alice and Jasper exchanged glances with one another, the trio broke out of the trees and into a large clearing on the side of a snow capped mountain. Built alongside the mountain was a large home, much larger than either of them had anticipated. It was the sight of this home, along with what they had found in Forks, that finally made the full impact of what Alice's vision would ultimately mean for the couple. They could live almost as humans did, as they once had. They could have a home, or many, and actually live as a normal human family would. They wouldn't have to live as nomads, falling prey to their natural instinct to thirst after human blood which ultimately held them captive, forcing them to move on before the death toll from their feeding rose too high to go unnoticed, chalked up as something other than a random missing person or an animal attack. No, by ignoring their most basic instinct to thrive off of the blood of humans Alice and Jasper could regain some semblance of humanity, and they were just truly beginning to figure that monumental accomplishment out.

Carlisle noticed the sudden silence from his traveling companions and allowed them to have this moment uninterrupted. He wasn't entirely certain what was going through their minds, but judging from the looks on their faces, it was definitely not going to be interrupted by him. He suspected that the other reason for bringing only the newest additions to his coven along on this journey was starting to be fulfilled, and much sooner and easier than he ever would have imagined for vampires that had been accustomed to feeding off of the humans. The front door to the large house swung open and three of the most beautiful women to ever walk the face of the earth walked out onto the large front porch. All three were blonde, voluptuous and obviously confident in the way they carried themselves, nothing spoke of being demure or shy about any one of them, and combined, it was easy to see how any man would be susceptible to their will. Carlisle heard Alice give a slight gasp behind him as she saw the three sisters and he turned just in time to see her pull Jasper slightly closer to her. Jasper stood slack jawed for the briefest of moments before looking at Carlisle and then his mate.

"Alice, my love, while I have never seen the likes of these three, you are still the only woman I will ever have eyes for and love for all of time." With that he leaned down and kissed his wife, after he broke off the kiss he draped his arm around her shoulders as they approached the Denali sisters.

"Carlisle, you're early," Tanya crooned, ever the flirt.

"We made better time than what I had thought, the snow wasn't as deep as I had expected." He answered her as he walked up and briefly kissed her on both cheeks in greeting before turning to the other two vampires.

"Ladies, if you will allow me to introduce to you the newest members of my coven, Alice and Jasper Whitlock. Alice, Jasper, this is Tanya, Kate and Irina."

"It's a pleasure to meet you ladies," Jasper greeted them by bowing, his old southern upbringing showing through in his mannerisms.

"Yes, it's a pleasure to meet you all, I've been dying to meet you all." Alice greeted them as she took Jasper's hand in her own.

"So tell us Carlisle, what brings you up for a visit? Surely it isn't just to introduce us to the newest members of your growing family?" Kate wasn't one to mince words; she preferred the direct approach especially when dealing with unfamiliar vampires.

"Perhaps we should take this conversation inside, the humans are hunting not too far off and I wouldn't want anyone to have a slip up so close to home." Irina wasn't too sure about these new comers, and did not trust them, or their self-restraint. She turned and went back inside the house without waiting for a response from anyone.

"Follow me, I'll show you where your rooms are while you're staying with us." Tanya gestured for Alice and Jasper to follow her.

"Kate, if I may, is Eleazar here? There is something I would like to discuss with him as well."

"He and Carmen should be back from their hunting trip at any moment. As a matter of fact, I expected them to have returned prior to your arrival. Now, are you going to tell us what is of such great importance that you've left Esme and the rest of your family behind, or are you going to continue being cryptic?"

"I'd like to discuss the two things separately if I may." Carlisle answered her as they walked into the large living room complete with a huge fireplace that filled an entire wall. While the fire that burned within it was unnecessary for their comfort, it did give the room a homey feel despite its size.

As the other four rejoined Carlisle and Kate, the front door opened and in walked Eleazar and Carmen, their eyes a bright gold making their recent hunt all the more evident.

"Carlisle! My dear old friend, to what do we owe the pleasure?" Eleazar greeted him with a hug and a handshake.

"Carmen, Eleazar, it is good to see you again."

"All right Carlisle, everyone is here now, so spill it." Kate, while happy to see her old friend, was not very long on patience.

"I'll start with the more simple reason for our trip. Alice and Jasper have only been with us for a short while, and I was thinking that if they could talk to you about the change in diet, it may be of some help to them."

"What Carlisle is getting at is that he is concerned we may slip up on our new diet which could lead to some complications with our neighbors back in Forks," Jasper wasn't fond of being made to sound as if he were weak or incapable of meeting a challenge, even if he knew it wasn't Carlisle's intent. He was a bit overwhelmed by the multitude of emotions coming off of their new acquaintances and was running short on patience as a result.

"Perhaps the reasons for our visit are a bit more intertwined than I realized." Carlisle knew that his explanation had offended Jasper, and it was not what he wanted to do or how he wanted them to perceive Jasper or Alice.

"All right Carlisle, perhaps you should tell us what the more complicated reason for your visit is then." Kate was ready to get down to the heart of the matter.

"We have settled near a small town called Forks on the Olympic Peninsula. When we first arrived, we were discovered by a couple of Indians that know of our kind. Their tribe had come across a mated pair a long time ago and had suffered greatly at their hands. As a condition to them not exposing us as vampires to the townspeople, we agreed to a treaty after I convinced them that we were not a threat to humans."

"Carlisle, why would you want to agree to a treaty with someone who would threaten to expose you? It makes no sense, why not just leave?" Eleazar was shaking his head in disbelief. He recalled their time together in Italy and remembered that Carlisle was decidedly different from any other vampire he had ever seen.

"Eleazar, my dear friend, they are an honorable tribe and I have no reason to distrust them. We reached an amicable agreement that was satisfactory to both parties. Besides, Esme had already broken ground on the house and you know how much I hate to disappoint her. She would have been heartbroken after she spent so much time looking for the perfect location for the house and had already cleared the trees for me to tell her we couldn't stay."

"And how is Esme, why didn't she come with you?" Carmen had been quiet up to this point, but she and Esme had taken to each other rather quickly and enjoyed each other's company.

"Carmen, make no mistake in Carlisle's reason for this visit. He has not come for a social visit, he is seeking answers as only he can do." Eleazar kissed Carmen on her forehead and turned back to his old friend, "So out with it Carlisle, what has you so perplexed that you sought us out without the rest of your family? It isn't like you to travel without the rest of your coven, especially without your mate. Come to think of it, I don't recall a time that you have traveled without Esme since she joined you."

"You are correct, Esme and Edward did not want to leave our new home, they are particularly fond of it and were concerned that if they all came with us we might not return. And when I tell you the other reason for our journey you'll understand why I left Rosalie and Emmett behind as well."

"Come now Carlisle, you're teasing us and we all know that's my job," Tanya was becoming curious, she always enjoyed taunting Edward.

"Perhaps it would be best for Jasper to tell you, as he was the first one to encounter our mystery." Carlisle turned everyone's attention to Jasper who had been sitting on the far end of the room with Alice.

"Of course Carlisle; Edward and I were, well, we were fighting in the woods down by the river a few months ago and didn't notice the two large wolves that were watching us until Emmett had arrived to break things up between us."

The onslaught of questions was almost immediate, and only one of them was about the wolves.

"Wait, you mean to tell us that you and Edward were physically fighting one another?" Tanya was in awe. She never would have guessed Edward to be a fighter, he was always so reserved in everything he did.

"You seriously hit Edward?" Irina was shocked; she couldn't picture Edward capable of antagonizing anyone to the point of physical aggression.

"Why were you and Edward fighting in the first place, or is that even relevant?" Kate was trying to determine what purpose any of this had to do with their visit.

"What do you mean there were wolves watching the two of you fight?" Eleazar had picked up on what Carlisle was hoping for.

Jasper looked at Carlisle before continuing on with his story. Carlisle nodded back at him knowing that he had made the right decision in coming to Denali for the answers they were looking


	24. Changes in the Wind

"As I was saying, Emmett was the first one of us to see the wolves that were watching us fight. Edward and I don't know how long they were watching us, but we both picked up on something from them as soon as we stopped fighting. It was almost as though they had not only been watching us but were laughing at us. Edward thought one of them had been thinking about how crossing the border would mean violating the treaty. Emmett and I both thought Edward had lost it when we all heard them make a chortling sound and Edward said that the wolves thought it was funny that we were fighting each other. When Emmett asked him about being able to hear animals Edward said he thought one of the thoughts he heard belonged to Chief Black, the leader of the Quileute Indians. He swore he thought it was coming from one of the wolves and not someone hiding further back into the tree line. That's just what we experienced the first time we saw them," Jasper concluded with all of them staring at him as though they had just heard the most outrageous tale of their lives.

"So Eleazar, what do you think? Is it possible that Edward's gift has expanded to the rest of the animal kingdom, that he can hear the thoughts not only of humans and vampires, but animals as well? Or, could there be another explanation, something that I remember Caius having a great loathing for?" Carlisle spoke only to Eleazar knowing that his time with the Volturi had been far more extensive than his own and with the hope that his old friend had learned more about the werewolves that terrified Caius than he had.

"Do you suspect the Children of the Moon Carlisle?" Eleazar knew what Carlisle was after, but he wanted to be certain, he didn't want to lead them all down the wrong path, he wanted more facts.

"In all honesty, that was my first reaction when I had heard about these wolves, but I didn't really pay that much attention to Caius and what I chalked up to irrational fears. I did not listen to his tales, we weren't exactly fond of one another as I'm sure you recall. I don't know all that much about the Children of the Moon, and I don't know that these two wolves necessarily fit the bill."

"What are you talking about Carlisle? Do you know something about these wolves that you haven't told us?" Alice was floored at this latest revelation, she had not seen it coming and was caught off guard.

"Carlisle, do you know more about these wolves than what you've been telling any of us? How did you keep it from Edward? Why would you keep such crucial information from us while we continued to search for them? You do realize this information could have given us a tactical advantage over the wolves and perhaps we could have tracked them down sooner," Jasper was angry at this revelation. His mind reeled with the tactical advantages this information could have given to them in their search for the wolves, in being able to defend themselves against an unknown adversary.

"Alice, Jasper, I can understand why the two of you may be upset with me, but you need to know, to understand that I don't have the answers that you are looking for. That's why we needed to come here, to talk to the ones who may be able to answer these questions, and many more that I have not given voice to. Eleazar, do you know what any of the rules were for the Children of the Moon? Wasn't there only a specific time when they could be hunted? All I truly recall was Caius being frustrated in trying to hunt them to extinction." Carlisle knew that if Eleazar was unable to answer their questions, it would be unlikely that the sisters would have anything of value to answer and the trip would be rendered null.

"I think I understand what it is that you are after Carlisle, but before I would be willing to answer any of your questions I'll need answers to several of my own."

"Of course Eleazar, but perhaps it would be best for you to gather the answers you seek from Jasper. Other than Edward, he's the only other one that picked up something out of the ordinary about our wolves other than how significantly large they are and I have only seen them once from a distance."

"Jasper, I need to know specifically when you saw the wolves. I need to know what time of day or night it was, what phase the moon was in, how many there are, no detail will be too small. If what you have stumbled across are truly Children of the Moon the implications will be far greater than any of you realize." Eleazar was hoping his initial response to the wolves the Cullens had stumbled across was wrong. He knew that if word of the Children of the Moon got back to Voltaire that it would mean their peaceful lives would be in jeopardy, Caius would accompany the guard to seek out their enemy and would not stop until they were hunted into extinction – it was what he had done centuries ago. Whatever they did, they would have to keep things quiet and handle it themselves. The Volturi would not allow them to continue on in peace where they currently lived.

Back in Forks...

Edward followed Esme into the store in town while she gathered up baking supplies. He didn't like going into the town, there were too many thoughts bombarding him at the same time. It was like there was a constant dull roar inside of his head that he couldn't turn the volume down on. He trailed behind Esme as she shopped, dutifully carrying the items she handed him, flour, sugar, salt, chocolate, _"there they are, the doctors family is so strange, have you ever seen anyone so beautiful, they never talk to anyone,"_ and Edward just sighed. It was easier to carry the bulky baking items in their sacks than it was to listen to the thoughts, and even the whispers that seemed to surround them in this small town. He was beginning to get a headache.

"Esme, can we go now?"

"I'm almost finished Edward, I just need to get some butter then we're done." Esme had tried to remember all the ingredients she would need for baking, but the memories were faded. She was trying to grasp at her human memories, she hadn't cooked since Carlisle had changed her, she didn't need to.

As they walked toward the cash register, the stares became more evident. Esme had a great deal more practice at doing the shopping to maintain appearances than Edward did. Edward heard Esmes thoughts telling him to just keep his eyes down and place the items on the counter.

"Good morning Mrs. Cullen. Is this everything for you today?" The clerk seemed to be the only one interested in showing any manners towards them.

"Good morning, I just need some butter and that'll do it for us," Esme replied. She had learned to keep conversation to a minimum, but always polite, it helped maintain their cover and seemed to keep the gossiping down about them. Esme felt that it was best to have them think of her as being painfully shy and not aloof, it would draw less attention.

"Very well, will a pound suffice?"

"Yes, that should be plenty."

"Looks like you're doing some baking."

"Yes, it's been a while, but I'm going to give it another go," Esme smiled shyly back at the store clerk as she paid for the groceries.

"And who do we have here helping you today?"

"My name is Edward." He could hear the man's thoughts and didn't like them so he felt it best to answer before Esme got dragged further into a conversation that she had no interest in. "We really do need to be going or else we're going to be late," he said to Esme.

"Of course Edward, I hadn't realized the time. Thank you Mr. Anderson, please give your wife my best."

Esme turned for the door as Edward picked up the groceries off of the counter and followed after her. He hadn't taken three steps before the lewd thoughts from Mr. Anderson hit him. Edward stopped and turned in his tracks leveling a hard stare at the man that made him take a step back.

"Give me a moment, mother," Edward said to Esme before he walked back up to the counter. Before she could say a word to him he was already at the counter.

"Mr. Anderson, my mother forgot the eggs." Edward's stare never faltered and the man on the other side of the counter was visibly flustered.

"Your, your, your mother?" he stammered.

"Yes, my mother. Now the eggs if you please." Edward maintained his hard stare as the man backed away from him and fumbled for a carton of eggs. "How much?"

"N-n-no ch-charge f-for them today," Mr. Anderson was scared but he didn't know why. All he knew was that the young man standing on the other side of the counter made his blood run cold and the faster he was out of his store the better he would feel. At that moment in time the kid could've emptied the shelves and he wouldn't have cared as long as he left quickly.

Edward smiled, "Thank you very much Mr. Anderson, that's very kind of you." He took the carton of eggs from the man's trembling hands and followed Esme out the door. Everyone who had seen the transaction stood frozen and staring after him. Edward didn't care, he didn't appreciate the thoughts Mr. Anderson was directing at Esme and was pleased at how he had made them stop. Esme did not approve of his actions though. Edward could hear her scolding him in her mind and just walked in silence behind her until they could enter the cover of the trees and head for home at a more comfortable speed and talk freely.

"What were you thinking Edward!" Esme practically hissed at him as they entered the house.

Edward had taken the silence on their run home as a good sign, he thought that she had cooled off a bit but realized he had misinterpreted Esme's silence.

"What? All I did was ask him for the eggs you forgot." Edward decided he would try playing innocent.

"You know damned well what I am talking about Edward Anthony Masen Cullen!"

"Uh-oh, sounds like Eddy went and got himself into some major trouble" Emmett boomed as he and Rosalie came down the stairs. Edward didn't need to be able to read their minds to know what they had been up to while he and Esme had been in town.


	25. The Vision

Everyone had been so engrossed in the details Jasper had been relaying to Eleazar about the wolves that no one had noticed Alice go into one of her trances. When her vision ended she couldn't contain her gasp.

Jasper was at her side in an instant, "What is it Alice, what's wrong?"

Everyone's attention was now on Alice.

"Something has happened. Carlisle, I'm not sure but I think Edward may have done something." Alice looked panic stricken.

"What do you mean Edward may have done something? Alice, what did you see?" Carlisle and Jasper were both staring at her.

"Did he bite someone?" Tanya joked.

"No, no, he didn't bite anyone but I think that he may have exposed us. Carlisle, I'm not sure, but it looked like he threatened the shop keeper right in front of everyone."

"What exactly did you see Alice?"

"Edward and Esme were in town doing some shopping and the man behind the counter was looking at Esme and Edward turned on him. I don't think he liked what the man was thinking because he was just standing there with his head down not looking at anyone and then he just glared at him. Esme finished paying for the groceries and exchanged niceties with the store clerk and then they were leaving when Edward stopped in his tracks. He sent Esme to go wait outside and he stalked back to the counter and the man was just cowering looking like he was scared to death and then he put some eggs on the counter and backed up against the wall telling Edward there was no charge. Then Edward just left the store and everyone was staring at him. He did make a point of telling the man that Esme was his mother though."

"Is that it? Is that everything?" Carlisle had to know if his mate was safe.

"No, there was one more thing. It was strange really; I've never had it happen before."

"What is it Alice?" Jasper was used to her visions, but not her having something out of the ordinary happen with them.

"There was a part of my vision that was just blank. I've been in that store with Esme a few times and I know where everything is, but there was a blank spot over by where the side window is. Everything else was exactly where I know it to be, the townspeople that are typically there and then just a blank right in the middle of it."

Eleazar walked slowly towards Alice looking at her carefully. He was scrutinizing her and slowly circling around her as if he was evaluating something very rare and of great value.

"Carlisle," Eleazar began, "you didn't tell me you had a see r. Alice, what kind of visions do you see?"

"Eleazar, it's not what you think, she only gets flashes and cannot control it," Carlisle was immediately aware of what Eleazar was after. When he was with the Volturri he used to help the brothers find those with gifts that would add value to the guard.

"I only get glimpses of the future. They just come at random, like Carlisle said, but if its someone I know it's easier for me to see them." Alice was wary of telling Eleazar too much after seeing Carlisle's reaction to his question. It hadn't struck her as being odd, most reacted in a similar way to her visions, if they didn't think she was completely crazy at least.

"I don't think Edward would have done something to jeopardize us, not without good reason any way. What concerns me is this unusual blind spot you say you've never had happen before. Is there anything that you haven't been able to see in the past?" Carlisle was beginning to contemplate cutting their trip short. He knew that Esme could handle herself sufficiently among the humans, and if it came to it, the others would help protect her.

"No, never. I mean, if I've had a vision, the image in my mind has always been complete. I've never had blank spots in my visions before." Alice wasn't as apprehensive answering Carlisle's questions. owIi

"Hmmm, maybe we should finish up with our business regarding the wolves and come back to your vision in a little while. Do you think you can try to see Edward and Esme again Alice?" Carlisle wanted to be sure they were alright, but they still hadn't gotten the answers they came for and he didn't want to leave without them unless it was completely unavoidable.

"I'll try Carlisle, but I can't promise you anything," Alice could tell that Carlisle was worried, but she would do what she could to help alleviate his concerns.

Back on the Res….

"Chief Black, there's something I need to tell you!"

Chief Black looked at the hysterical woman that had just burst into his home. She was more of a girl really, not really old enough for him to consider a woman but old enough that the young men in his tribe would be taking notice of her. "What is it Kayla? What is so important that you think you can just storm into my home without even knocking on my door?"

* * *

**A/N Thanks for those of you who are still reading. Please REVIEW and let me know what you think. If you have any suggestions/questions/comments I would welcome them all. I admit that this was a short update, busy with the back to school stuff with my kid and life in general. I am struggling with the Denali story line, any suggestions would be welcome to break up the writers block. I have a couple of later chapters that are ready to go, but it isn't time for them yet in the story, although I am getting close to wrapping things up. I admit that my motivation to overcome the writers block is fading and I am tempted to just skip ahead to the chapter I have ready to go, but don't think it would be fair to those of you who have stuck with me this long/far. I currently foresee needing roughly 4 or 5 more chapters written to get to the one that has been ready and waiting for a couple of weeks now, and only one or two more after that to wrap things up. Let me know what you think!**


	26. Worries

Kayla stood in front of the Chief with her mouth hanging open. She had just realized that she had barged into the home of their Chief without so much as a knock at his door. His tone hammered this home with her telling her whatever it was she had to say it had damned well better be important or there would be hell to pay.

"Well, out with it girl!"

"In town, at the store," Kayla stammered.

"What concern is the store or the townspeople to me?" Chief Black demanded.

"The Cullen family was there."

That was it; the Cold Ones had finally done something to violate the treaty. Chief Black immediately forgot about how Kayla had barged into his home showing him absolutely no respect. Could this be the news he had been waiting for since they had struck their treaty in the woods? Had one of the Cold Ones finally slipped up and violated the treaty, attacking one of the pale faces?

"Tell me what you saw, what happened, and do not leave anything out do you understand me?"

"Yes sir," Kayla stammered. It was slowly starting to dawn on her that she was no longer in trouble for her entry.

"I was there looking at some fabric when the woman and the youngest boy came into the store. I stayed where I was, careful not to get too close to them…."

"I don't care what you were doing! Tell me what happened, what did the Cold Ones do?" Chief Black roared at her.

"Nothing at first, they were just shopping and then they went to pay for their items. The woman spoke to Mr. Anderson and he was flirting with her like he does all the pretty women while she paid him for their things, it was all normal enough and then the boy started acting really strange."

"Strange how? Did he do something? Say something? What?!"

"Chief Black, I'm trying to tell you, but you keep interrupting me."

"Go on then, get to the point already!"

"I didn't hear what they were saying, but I saw Mr. Anderson look at him while he was talking to the woman and that's when the boy stopped staring at the floor and stalked right up to the counter staring at Mr. Anderson like he was going to kill him or something. The woman tried to get him to leave and then the boy sent her on ahead of him out of the store. He told her he was getting something she forgot and that's when she left the store. I've never seen anyone move like he did, it was so, so, so graceful? It was smooth like he was sliding across the floor, everyone just stared at him the way he was so graceful. But when he spoke to Mr. Anderson the only thing anyone heard him say was that his mother had forgotten the eggs. Mr. Anderson was pressed up against the wall trying to get as far away from him as he could without running away from the cash register, and then Mr. Anderson gave the boy the eggs for free. Can you believe that? Cheap Mr. Anderson who wouldn't give a starving child a piece of stale bread that he would rather throw in the trash told him he could have the eggs for no charge! Everyone was staring at them but no one said a word, no one heard anything other than the boy asking for the eggs and Mr. Anderson telling him he wasn't charging them for it."

"Is that it Kayla, is that everything?"

"Yes sir," suddenly Kayla felt very foolish in her retelling of the events at the store that morning. Running through her words in her mind made it sound like she was a complete fool for running to Chief Black. She hadn't done justice to the events that she and the others in the store had witnessed. The look she got in response to her story made her feel queasy, she wasn't sure if she was in trouble for her previous lack of manners, or for the ridiculous tale she had just told the chief of her tribe.

"Go away, and before you go home, go to the Clearwaters and tell them to send Joseph to me as soon as he returns from the mill."

"Yes sir," Kayla quickly ran from the house in a desperate attempt to put as much distance behind her as she could. She was still in disbelief at her luck, she was sure that she was going to be punished, then again, her parents may punish her anyway. Kayla had broken the rules by going in to the town by herself; they were supposed to be keeping their distance from the townspeople.

Ephraim was running over the girls story in his mind, on the surface it sounded utterly ridiculous, it was stupid. So what if the boy had asked for the eggs his mother forgot, but what about the storekeepers' reaction to the boy? What happened between the two of them that no one else could here that had the man so terrified? Had the boy threatened him, shown his true nature to the man? He had hoped that they had violated the treaty in a blatant way, not that he wanted them to kill anyone, but an obvious breach that could not be disputed that would either force their departure or allow him to hunt them down and destroy them. He would continue to go over the events in his mind until Joe showed up and then they would decide what they were going to do as the only spirit warriors in the tribe.

Back at the Cullen residence...

"Edward, what were you thinking! Do you know what you've done?" Esme was infuriated.

"I don't know what you're so upset about Esme, nothing happened."

"Nothing happened. Nothing happened! Are you out of your mind! You had that man backed up against the wall in front of half the women in town! Do you understand what that means? Don't you realize what you've done?" Esme was practically yelling, an unfamiliar concept in the Cullen household.

"Whoa, Edward, what did you do?" Emmett wasn't sure how far to push things given Esmes' mood, but couldn't resist taking the shot at Edward especially when it was so rare for him to screw things up.

"Nothing Emmett, now go mind your business somewhere else." Edward was not willing to put up with Emmett and he sure as hell had no intention of explaining himself or his actions to him.

"Don't you talk to him like that!" Rosalie snapped at Edward. "What did he do this time Esme?"

"He scared poor Mr. Anderson half to death in front of the entire store! He had the poor man backed up against the wall so absolutely terrified that he gave him the eggs for free." Esme was still beside herself with worry, and Carlisle wouldn't be back for days.

"Great thinking Edward, scare the human in front of the town gossip queens," Emmett couldn't help himself.

"You are not helping Emmett!" Esme glared at him.

Emmett knew that he had crossed the line and quickly retreated back up the stairs. He wanted to be out of the line of fire, but still wanted to be close enough to hear what was going on.

"Esme, do you have any idea what that man was thinking? If you did, I'm sure you wouldn't be anywhere near this upset with me. Anderson is a pig!"

"Edward, it doesn't matter what he was thinking. I know he is a horrible flirt, he does it with many of the women that come into his store, but his behavior does not excuse yours. You know people whisper about us as it is, we do not need to go around giving them more reason to gossip and speculate about us. We are supposed to try to blend in, to hide in plain sight, not draw unfavorable attention to ourselves by terrorizing the towns' shopkeeper in his store full of people in broad daylight!"

"I don't think it was as bad as what you're making it out to be Esme. I'm sure hardly anyone noticed anything, I kept my voice down and the only thing I said loud enough for anyone to hear was to ask him for the eggs."

"How can you be so sure Edward? Esme is right, we're supposed to be keeping a low profile, otherwise we're going to have to leave sooner rather than later," Rosalie had a good idea of what had happened, she had once been on the receiving end of Mr. Andersons less thank welcome flirtations when they had first arrived. Since then, she made it a point to never go to the store alone and she let someone else deal with him. Emmett had wanted to kill him when she had told him what had happened, it took a lot of distractions to make him forget about it, but they had both agreed that he would never go to the store after that.

"I could hear their thoughts, only a few of them even really noticed that anything was going on, and most of the humans that had noticed quickly lost interest when they heard me asking for the eggs. I'm telling you, there's nothing to worry about. Now Esme, why don't you go bake those brownies or whatever it is you told Mrs. Swan you told her you were going to bring her."

"You're sure no one noticed Edward? You're absolutely positive no one knows what you did, that you scared that poor man half to death?" Esme desperately wanted to believe what he was saying.

"Yes, Esme, I promise, I could hear their thoughts and it wasn't about our conversation about some forgotten eggs. It was their usual mundane thoughts."

* * *

**A/N Thanks to all of you who have read this far. I had no idea this would grow to the length it has, just a simple telling of how the Cullens first arrived in Forks, and that first departure. Since the amount of feedback has been restricted to only a small handful, it is my intent to finish this story up as quickly as I can, I plan to take you through the end of Clarisse's pregnancy but not Nora's. I will be cutting short the Denali visit and reducing the number of chapters remaining. As always, feedback/reviews are greatly welcome. If there is something you want to see, let me know and if it fits in with my original thought process for the story, I will work it in to the best of my ability. Thanks again for reading.**


	27. Deciphiring Visions

Alice looked Jasper in the eyes and mouthed 'let's go outside' not caring if the others saw her, but at the same time not wanting to say anything more in front of them. She was still wary of the sisters and something about Eleazar made her feel as if she was a prize for the taking. To say that she didn't trust them wouldn't be accurate, but she didn't feel like she was among family like she did with the Cullen's either. "Excuse us please," Alice said as she took Jasper's hand in hers and stood to leave the room.

"Of course Alice, take as much time as you need," Carlisle smiled at her with the understanding look of a father.

"Of course," Eleazar agreed, "It will give Carlisle and I chance to catch up on old times and to mull over what Jasper has told us about the wolves."

"Guess that leaves us girls to ourselves," quipped Tanya as she gathered her sisters and walked out of the large living room.

Eleazar nodded at Carmen and she joined Irina and Kate as they followed Tanya out. He stood looking after his mate for a moment before he turned to address Carlisle.

"Out with it my old friend, I know you've been holding back since you learned of Alice's visions," Carlisle offered.

"Carlisle, do you realize what you have? Do you know what Aro would do to have a vampire with such gifts as hers? Are you certain you want her in your coven, for as much as she may bring if Aro learns of her it may be the catalyst that brings about your doom."

"Eleazar, she does not possess the ability to control her gift, her visions come at random and without warning. She says that she has an easier time getting visions when she knows someone well, but they still are without warning. Alice cannot give Aro the seer he so desperately desires, he wants someone that can use their gift at his direction, a gift that will bend to his will. Alice, while her visions are remarkable, do not meet his criteria of being able to produce on command."

"I think you under estimate her, she is still young to this life, and with time, she can learn to control her gift of sight. Aro will know this and he will have the patience to cultivate such a rare gift, especially if it were to lend itself to ensuring his continued reign of power. Tell me more about her, how she came into this life."

"It's really quite amazing that she managed to survive. She does not have any recollection of her human life, nor does she know who her creator was."

"How does she not know who changed her? Who helped her through the change and to teach her…."

"That is what is so remarkable; she awoke outside an asylum all alone. There was no one there to help her or to tell her about our laws; Alice was completely and utterly alone when she awoke. The only thing that she had to guide her was her visions. She claims that the visions showed her where she needed to go to meet Jasper for the first time, and that he was destined to be her mate. Once they met up with one another, Jasper helped her learn our laws and how to remain hidden from the humans and other vampires when needed. He even taught her how to hunt, but she had a strong aversion to hunting humans, something that Jasper did not understand. I think he still has a great deal of trouble with our dietary choices even now, which is partly why I brought him here. It was my hope that he could talk to the sisters, and to you, about the transition over to an animal diet and what he could expect as part of his journey."

"How old is Jasper Carlisle? I can sense that he is older than Alice but he is quiet and can't quite pin it down."

"I've never asked him specifically, but he was changed by a woman named Maria who found him when he was a Major in the Texas Cavalry. She used him to train her armies; she was the leader of one of the fiercest armies in the battles for the territories in the south, and his skills ensured her many victories, it is not something he cares to discuss."

"That would certainly explain all of his scars. I can't recall the last time I've seen someone with so many, not even among the guard. And if he was part of the Texas Cavalry, that would mean he has spent a little over 70 years or so in this existence. It's enough time to be set in ones' eating habits, but nowhere near as long as what we overcame in changing our diets. What other skills did Jasper bring to this Maria, other than his military training?"

"Jasper does have a gift; he can pick up on the emotions of those surrounding him. He can influence the emotions of others as well, but I am not sure just how strong that ability is. He has briefly explained it, but only after Edward confronted him on it. It was not the most amicable conversation; in fact I believe it bordered on the adversarial."

"Edward has never been one to act irrationally, much less seek out a confrontation. What happened to set him off, especially with a stranger?"

"Edward felt as though Jasper was keeping something from us, and he couldn't get a clear read on Jasper's thoughts, it made Edward very suspicious of him. It wasn't until Edward challenged him that Jasper admitted to having his gift. Jasper's past has ingrained a certain amount of precaution in all of his dealings; he looks at things in a tactical manner. For someone who has the gift or reading and influencing emotions, he can be very removed from his own emotions in analyzing a situation and deciding on the most advantageous course of action."

"Carlisle, I know you came here out of curiosity about those wolves you've encountered, but I think you need to be more concerned about your growing coven. These two bring your numbers up to seven, which is a very large group to exist together for our kind, and is certainly enough to draw attention to you. When you add in the fact that three of them are gifted…" Eleazar shook his head in dismay. "What I mean to say Carlisle is that you need to take care not to draw attention or it could mean Aro sending the guard after you."

"Thank you for your concern old friend. Aro does not concern me, not so much as these wolves do. If these wolves turn out to be the Children of the Moon that Caius so feared, my family has a much greater immediate threat."

"This is true. I've been thinking about what Jasper has said about the encounters with the wolves. They have happened both during the light of day and the dark of night. The Children of the Moon were able to conceal themselves during the daytime; we were only able to hunt them during the night when the moon was full. It nearly drove Caius mad having to wait for the moon to cycle through its phases while we hunted them into extinction."

"So you do believe these wolves to be something different then? What do you make of them?"

"I'm not entirely sure what it is that you have stumbled upon Carlisle, but I would suggest you to proceed with great caution until you do know what it is. I am almost tempted to come take a look for myself, but at the same time, not foolish enough to deliberately go seeking something that could very well be the end of me."

"I understand your point of view Eleazar, but my family has set up a home and we really do like it there. It is the first place we have set up that we can all agree upon feels like a true home, dare I say it, a human home. I know it sounds insane, but it is much like what you have here, Edward feels so strongly about the place that he actually instigated a fight with Jasper not long after they had arrived."

"Is that what was happening the first time the wolves were spotted?"

"Oddly enough, yes. Why, what are you thinking?"

"If I were to venture a guess, I would say that what you have stumbled across are not the Children of the Moon, but something else, something entirely different. With that being said, I have to question whether or not they are an equal threat to are mortal enemies of old. Have the wolves acted aggressively towards any of you?"

"No, they haven't. The few times when we've spotted them, they have always maintained their distance. And, when Edward was able to hear their thoughts, it wasn't anything threatening; they were laughing at them for fighting one another."

"Carlisle, they are most certainly not the werewolves that Caius is so terrified of."

* * *

"Alice, what is it? What didn't you want to say in front of the others? Was it your vision, I can feel how stressed you are."

"Jasper, it's not my vision, it's the way Eleazar was looking at me. He made me feel like I was a prize to be had or something. It just made me very uncomfortable. I know Carlisle trusts them, but I just don't think I'm ready to put the same amount of faith in them."

"I saw his reaction, and I felt what was behind it. He was surprised by your visions, Carlisle didn't tell them about your gift. I think he was also scared but of what I'm not sure. We'll have to ask Carlisle about it as soon as we get the chance. Now, what else is bothering you? I know you too well to know that that is not the only thing bothering you." Jasper kissed her lightly on the top of her head as he put his arms around her in an effort to make her feel safe.

"The blind spot, I've never had a vision like that where I couldn't see everything. It was like a white blob right in the middle of it all, everything else around it was there but then it was just blank, like there was something there but I wasn't supposed to see what or who was in that spot…" Alice trailed off shaking her head with a look of desperation in her eyes. She looked up at Jasper and saw the sadness in his eyes, she didn't need a vision to know that he felt badly for her and probably frustrated because he knew there was nothing he could do to help her with her predicament.

"Jasper, do you think it means something? I mean, do you think it means that there is something wrong with me?"

"No, I don't think there is anything wrong with you, and I don't want you to entertain that thought for even a second longer. You've never had an incomplete vision before right?"

"Never."

"Has there ever been something that you knew you couldn't see?"

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean by that. You know my visions just come on by themselves, that I can't force them to happen when I want and about what I want."

"I know, but that's not what I meant. I mean has there ever been something that you think you should've been able to see but couldn't. I know you've been trying to figure out a way to control your visions a little by concentrating on something specific – have you noticed anything with that?"

"It's only been a couple of months, you know that."

Jasper could feel the frustration rolling off of Alice, he didn't need to hear it in her voice to pain him. He knew his questions were making her feel worse, not better.

"What have you been concentrating on in you exercises? Alice, I'm not trying to make you feel worse, I'm just trying to help you figure this out, alright?"

"I know you're not," she pouted. "I've been trying to focus on the wolves but it hasn't worked."

"Are the wolves the only thing you've been trying to see?"

"Mostly, and then I was trying to concentrate on Esme, or more specifically her garden that she just planted. I wanted to be able to tell her if it was going to be a success or not."

"What happened with that one?"

"I don't know, I couldn't see the garden, just her being here in Denali with us. So I don't think that worked at all."

"Tell me more about the vision of Esme being here. Was it supposed to be on this trip or at another time? Don't leave out anything Alice, the slightest detail could be the key we're looking for."

"I don't know, I was just thinking about Esme and how she loves to garden and I know she planted all those flowers not too long before we left. I was trying to see how the flowers would turn out, she was worried about how much sun they would be getting but she didn't want to take down any more trees if there was enough sun reaching her garden. But instead of seeing the garden I saw her here, in the snow walking with Carlisle and they were talking about having moved again and how long it would be before we could go back to the house in Forks. I could see Rose and Emmett up ahead of them walking and holding hands. We were all here, not in this house, but I could feel that all of us were in Denali in a house of our own."

"So nothing about the flowers?"

"No, nothing."

"Do you think it means we'll have moved before the flowers have finished growing?"

"I don't know, maybe? Jasper, I'm just not sure. I don't know if it's because we're going to move before the flowers bloom, or if it's because of something else. Maybe it's because I was focusing on Esme and at some point we're going to move to Denali. I couldn't tell, there wasn't anything to indicate a time frame for any of it."

"I agree with you about not wanting to say too much in front of the Denali Coven, I'm not of the mindset that they will bring us any harm and Carlisle does trust them. I think that with all the years they have been in existence, they hold a wealth of knowledge and are survivors, especially the sisters. They have to be nearly a thousand years old, if not more from the stories they tell and the human legends that have been created about them. We couldn't ask for better friends, but at the same time we can't lose track of the fact that they know how to survive above all else. That means self-preservation comes first, and I believe they would sacrifice a friendship if they perceived it to be a threat to their existence."

"Okay, so we wait until we can talk to Carlisle alone then. I also think we should probably be heading back home sooner rather than later. I don't know about you, but I'm beginning to feel uncomfortable being away from home now that I've had the vision about Edward in the store."

Jasper kissed her gently on the lips and hugged her close before he answered her. "It's agreed, we talk to Carlisle and head for home as soon as possible."


	28. Baking

Esme stood in the kitchen surrounded by mixing bowls, flour, sugar and broken egg shells strewn about the normally pristine countertops. She was watching the oven waiting for the biscuits to finish baking. The brownies were already cut into perfect squares, plated and wrapped inside of the basket she intended to take to the Swan woman as soon as the biscuits were done. The cooking had proven to be more of a challenge than what she was able to recall from her hazy human memories. As she waited, Esme contemplated cleaning up the kitchen but didn't want to risk burning another batch of biscuits; she was out of eggs and did not want to risk another trip back into the store after the way Edward had behaved. She was still mad at him, told him to go out for a run or something to get control of himself, to give her the space she needed to cool down.

"What happened in here?" Rosalie greeted her.

"I was trying my hand at some baking is all."

"You've been in here for hours Esme, are you alright? I could have Emmett go beat Edward into some trees for you if it will make you feel better," Rosalie knew what the answer would be but she also knew she needed to do something to cheer Esme up.

"Rose – you know I don't approve of that sort of behavior."

"I know, do you want some help cleaning up, or are you going to burn another batch and keep at it?"

"Oh!" Esme exclaimed as she pulled open the oven door. "I'm out of eggs, I can't make another batch without them." She looked over the biscuits on the metal tray in her hand surveying them. "I guess these will have to do, besides its starting to get late and I need to get over to see Clarisse before anyone else arrives at her home."

"Why are you going to visit the human again? I thought Carlisle said you only needed to check on her once or twice?"

"He did, but there is something about her that reminds me of me when I was still human, it's like I can almost remember being pregnant when I'm around her…." Esme trailed off getting lost in her thoughts.

Rosalie stared at Esme briefly, understanding that longing. She hated being a vampire for the simple fact that she would never be able to have a baby of her own. She understood why Esme would be drawn to the pregnant human, interacting with her only for a short time would still allow her remember what it felt like to have a baby growing in her womb and was nearly overcome by a pang of sadness. She quickly shook her head as if it would empty the thoughts from it and started to clean up the counter as Esme plucked the hot biscuits off the tray and into the cloth napkin she had lined the basket with in silence. They both longed for children of their own and they both knew that they could never have them; it was a bond that only they shared. Alice didn't want children; she had no recollection of her human life so she didn't understand what Esme and Rosalie wanted or why they wanted it.

"Do you know where Edward has gotten off to? Carlisle wanted him to accompany me when I go to the Swann residence and I just need to get cleaned up before I go over there."

"I'll go look for him while you get cleaned up. Don't you worry about it Esme." Rosalie gave her a quick hug before leaving in search of her brother.

"Clarisse, are you sure you're feeling okay? I could wait until Nora gets here…."

"No, Charles, you have to get to work, you know how the foreman gets when anyone is late for the start of their shift. I'll be fine, it's only a few minutes, and I promise to keep off of my feet and stay put here on the sofa," Clarisse gave her husband a weak smile before gasping for air suddenly.

"That's it; I'm staying right here with you. Of all the times for Dr. Cullen to be out of town, why did it have to be now?"

"It's nothing, just a really strong kick. Do you want to feel it?" Clarisse took her husband's hand and placed it on her swollen belly letting him feel their baby moving inside of her. She watched him as the look of wonder and amazement took over the look of concern that had clouded his face only moments ago. "See, just a really strong kick, he's been doing that a lot lately."

"Clarisse, it's… it's amazing! Do you really think it's a boy?"

"I'm not sure, and as long as the baby is healthy and strong, it doesn't matter all that much to me."

Charles looked at his wife, wizened by the hardships and losses that they had both endured with the loss of the other pregnancies. "Do you know how beautiful you are, how smart you are right in this moment? I love you so much Clarisse, I don't want you to ever forget that," he was astonished with his wife and could only kiss her to show her how deeply he meant the words he had just spoken to her.

"Charles, you are making me blush," Clarisse chided him, "now you better get going or you really are going to be late getting to the mill!"

"Alright, alright, I'm going. Just promise me you will be careful and I'll be home as soon as I can."

"I know sweetheart. Don't worry I will be fine and Nora will be here in less than an hour, 30 minutes if you keep stalling."

Esme and Edward stood silently in the trees watching and waiting for Charles Swan to leave for work. Only three days had passed since their first visit, and Esme wondered if she was being too eager to visit Clarisse Swan, a pregnant human who brought powerful memories back to her from her own pregnancy. Maybe Edward and Rosalie were right, maybe she should've waited another day or two to make this visit. As soon as they had heard the woman gasp her doubts were erased, she felt an urgent need to be with her, to make sure the baby was alright. Esme wondered where these feelings were coming from, were they her memories from the child she had lost, was it some sort of connection that mothers shared, or was she trying to live vicariously through her in an attempt to get back something that was forever gone from her existence. Edward sighed next to her, she had forgotten he was there and could hear all of her thoughts.

"I'm sorry Edward, I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay Esme; I think I can understand why you feel like you do. The husband is leaving, get ready."

They watched Charles leave his home and start running towards the mill, he was late and knew that it would mean suffering the wrath of the foreman if he didn't get to work on time. Edward scanned the street looking for any passersby and the houses for anyone watching from the windows.

"All clear Esme. You'll only have a few moments to drop off the baked goods before her friend shows up."

"I know, I won't be long," she assured him.

"I give you the signal as soon as I know she is coming."

"Alright, and don't you forget to stay out of sight – especially after the way you behaved at the store the other day. The last thing we need is for Mrs. Swan to hear about what happened and then find out you've been here just watching her house. The poor woman is under enough strain as it is, we don't want to add to it."

"Yes, Esme," Edward knew that she wasn't trying to make him feel bad, she was genuinely concerned for the pregnant woman and he wasn't all that interested in digging around inside of her head to try to understand it. He thought of it as a woman thing – not something he needed to be involved with or trying to decipher.

Esme darted across the street and was ringing the bell to the Swan residence as Edward took up his hiding spot in the large oak across the street. Another gasp came from the living room and Esme couldn't help herself, she opened the door calling for Clarisse, completely forgetting that she hadn't been granted permission to enter the home.

"Are you alright dear?" Esme's face was etched with concern, so much so that Clarisse forgot that the woman had just barged into her home.

"Fine, he's just kicking up a real storm this morning," Clarisse grimaced as the baby landed another strong kick in her ribs.

"I'm sorry for not waiting for you to answer, I was just concerned, I heard you gasp and I was worried…."Esme trailed off hoping that the human would not realize how loud she had been, that she would accept the easy excuse of the doctor's wife being concerned for his patient that he had asked her to check on.

"I'm sorry for scaring you, guess it was a bit louder than I realized. It's no wonder that Charles didn't want to leave me," Clarisse tried to chuckle but then was distracted. "What is that heavenly smell Mrs. Cullen?"

"Please, call me Esme. I baked for you. I'm afraid that baking is not my strong suit, but I hope that you enjoy them – biscuits and brownies. I didn't know if you liked chocolate, so then I thought I'd try to make biscuits for you."

"That is so very kind of you Esme. You really shouldn't have gone to all that trouble, and I do love chocolate, we just don't buy it very often." Clarisse looked down at her lap, looking suddenly sad at the mention of the chocolate. "May I try a brownie?"

"By all means! You're sure it won't upset your stomach at this hour of the day?"

Clarisse laughed, "I'm well past the morning sickness at this point, it's just difficult for me to eat much of anything the baby is getting so big now."

Esme smiled knowingly at her. She vaguely remembered her own pregnancy years ago through the fog that clouded many of her human memories, "Just a small one then."

Clarisse took the brownie from Esme and slowly ate it, like someone who was trying to remember every bite of the world's finest delicacy. Esme watched and wondered if she had done something wrong, she couldn't remember the last time she had seen a human eat anything, much less at this slow of a pace.

"Is something wrong? Did I make a mistake with the recipe?"

"No, Esme, it's wonderful! I can't remember the last time I tasted something quite so decadent. Can you stay for a while this morning? My friend Nora is on her way over and I'm sure she would love to meet you, not to mention get your recipe. She is much better at baking deserts than I am, we even have an agreement worked out when we all get together for dinners that I take the main course and she handles the baked goods."

Esme smiled at her, "I wish I could stay but I really do need to be getting home to finish cleaning up the kitchen and all. I'm hoping that Carlisle will be home in the next day or so and I really do want everything to be just so for him. Is there anything else that you need or would like before I go?"

"No, I should be fine. Nora won't be much longer I'm sure of it."

"If you're sure then; you are feeling alright then? That sounded like that little one in there was giving you quite a work out when I got here."

"I think I'm good. This one is different than the other ones were. I'm positive with you and Dr. Cullen looking after us this little one will be just fine once he decides to make his debut."

Esme listened for a moment before replying. She listened to the steady heartbeat of Clarisse and then the faster heartbeat that emanated from her swollen belly. They both seemed strong and healthy and Esme was about to resign herself to leaving when she heard Edward whistle from his position outside. It was soft enough that Clarisse wouldn't have noticed it, but she knew she had to hurry.

"I'll show myself out. Make sure you keep to your bed rest and take good care of the both of you."

"Will you come back by again?"

"If Carlisle isn't back in three days, I promise I will come by to check on you again, alright?"

"Alright. And thank you for everything, especially the brownies."

"You're welcome dear, but I really must be going now. Good bye Clarisse."

Esme turned and left without waiting for a response, she knew she was cutting it close and needed to hurry. As she reached the front door Edward let out another whistle, more urgent then before. Esme opened the door and closed it as quickly behind her as she dared not wanting to draw any attention from Clarisse. She looked down the street and saw Nora walking briskly toward her, she glanced up the block and decided to risk it, she ran at vampire speed across the street and up into the tree next to Edward.

"Cutting it a bit close aren't you?"

"I know Edward, but I needed to be sure they were alright."

"You mean you wanted to make sure the brownies were alright, don't you?" Edward laughed softly as Nora approached.

"Well, it's been quite some time since I had to cook anything and I was concerned I had ruined them when she was eating it so slowly."

"She loved them Esme. They just can't afford to buy the chocolate to make such things and it made her a little bit sad. Trust me, her thoughts can be quite loud at times and she was so excited when you told her you had made her brownies."

"Really? She really did like them?"

"Shhh, Nora will hear you."

The two of them sat perched in the tree as they watched the woman enter the house across from them. As soon as it was clear, they both jumped down and ran into the forest where they weren't too concerned about being seen.


End file.
